Finding Angel
by squeekness
Summary: Kimble finds his Angel. Part 26 of my Kimble series.
1. Chapter 1

Summary : Kimble finds his Angel. Part 26 of my Kimble series.

Notes : Rated M for language, violence, and sexual situations.

AU but only because I chose to change a few things in my dear friends' histories for simplification, nothing drastic so please forgive. I've been working on this story for years so I do ask that you don't use any of my non-Marvel universe characters without my permission. I love my Siskans as I do my children.

For anyone who is interested, I have a forum to discuss my work or if you just wanted to say hello. I would love to hear from you. I will respond to your reviews there or answer any questions you may have as well. The link is on my profile page.

Art for Recovery, The King and Me, and The Dreamer has been posted on my webpage if anyone is interested in looking at it.

I have decided that going forward I will be posting on a bi-weekly schedule. It gives me more time to get things better prepared and some much needed art done. The Game series will begin after my next post and it hasn't been gone over as many times as Kimble, I want to have it as good for you as I can. – SQ.

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(One)

Kimble fidgeted impatiently as he was fussed over. The group had returned from the flower field where Fallen had taken him only minutes ago and they were now out by the pool patio, near to the house. Kimble was crouched on an open lawn lounger, his wings fanned out to the sun. He was hot in the sun now in spite of the spring air and wanted to strip down, but Henry insisted he keep his pants on. They weren't alone, both Warren and Neal remained as guards. Fallen and Seth were here as well, watching the proceedings.

"I need you to swallow another probe, Kimble," Henry insisted, handing Kimble the device. It looked like a medium sized jawbreaker. Beast had Seth bring up some monitoring equipment from the Lab and he was running as many tests as his prodigious brain could think of. The results were coming in quickly and he was trying to process it all. In sum, Beast was having a blast.

"I swallowed two of 'em already," the pilot grumbled a little irritably. He was feeling much better now with the sun charging him up and would have loved a nice flight around the house but Henry wanted to work. Still a Courtesan inside and programmed to please, Kimble stayed as he was, doing whatever Henry asked of him.

"I need another. Please, Kimble."

Kimble did as he was told, gagging a little as he swallowed what Beast had given him. The probes Henry were using were becoming more complicated and unfortunately, larger.

"Give me the first one back if you can, please."

Kimble squinted and concentrated. He retched and coughed it up, making Warren grimace a little in disgust. Neal, however was fascinated. "How did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Know which one is which?"

Kimble smiled a little sheepishly. "Don't know. I just thinks about it and it happens."

"Cool."

Kimble cocked his head up at the young Indian man. They had seen very little of each other since the whole Zander thing and hadn't spoken at all. Kimble decided to take this opportunity to make amends. "I'm sorry if I hurts ya that one time. I- I didn't really knows what I wuz doin'."

"It's all right. I slept it off and I was fine."

There was more to it than that, but Neal had kept it to himself. He'd had the strangest dream after Zander had grabbed him like that. He'd been falling through an empty grey space, down into nothingness. It was a gentle descent and he wasn't afraid at all. In fact he'd felt a strange sense of comforting love, after all, he hadn't been alone. Kimble was there with him, holding him like a lover. There was nothing to fear here, only the sense that this was just too good for him to want it to end. There was a strange voice then, a tinny messanger proclaiming, "Unable to make connection," and then it was over. He didn't wake up on the outside, he simply fell black into a deep restful sleep. He'd woken a few hours later feeling oddly exhilarated and refreshed, not quite sure what had happened. He tossed it off as another bizarre X-man experience and left it alone. He smiled now as Kimble looked at him with the playful eyes of a child.

"Kin ya gives me some more plasma? I won't jumps ya like that again," the Siskan promised, the words out of his mouth before he realized what he was saying.

Henry turned Kimble's chin, making the pilot look at him. "No, Kimble. The plasma heats you up too much. I'm already not very happy with how warm you are now. It's not as bad as when Neal charged you the last time, but I'm still concerned that your hardware will be damaged even further."

"But the plasma makes me feels good," Kimble whined with a pout, looking up at Neal again with eager eyes and a disarming smile, hoping to charm him just a little.

Neal didn't move but offered him a friendly smile nonetheless. He liked Kimble in spite of himself, it was those eyes. He looked playful and fun and he could now see why Remy had been so adamant that he be saved. "Doctor's orders, little fella. Sorry."

"It hurts you, Kim," Henry repeated firmly, he wasn't going to budge on the matter.

"No it don't. Not really."

"You can no longer shift your skins."

"I gots melted."

"You got damaged," Beast corrected, trying to keep his tone gentle. He didn't want Kimble getting upset and having another episode of personality changing, the Siskan was being nice and cooperative at the moment and Henry wanted it to stay that way.

"That ain't the same," Kimble tried to argue. It was a wasted effort, he could see he was getting nowhere with the big blue doctor.

"Plasma makes you high. It's a side effect of your components being overloaded. You don't want your drives to crash, do you? We certainly don't. We like you just as you are."

"Plasma feels good," Kimble repeated, keeping his head down and slumping his wings a little. Beast's compliment was wasted on him, he was feeling grumpy now at not getting what he wanted.

"And the sun?" Henry queried, fascinated by the whole thing. Although he recognized Kimble and his various selves as persons, the Siskan was still a machine, a puzzle to be figured out. Henry was in his glory trying to sort it all out.

"It ain't the same," Kimble insisted and looked up at Neal again. "It'll be okay. Just a small one? Please?"

"I'll bust up another cat for it, how's about that?" 'Shay cackled maliciously as she came out suddenly, making everyone cringe. She didn't want Kimble to have plasma, it would refuel his desire to live. As it was, she was upset about Kimble being out in the sun and here he was, being indulged. Maybe she could put a stop to it.

"**_No!"_** Lin squeaked. **_"Git back! We cain'ts fail the Master again, he's nice ta us!"_**

Henry sighed in exasperation. Kimble had been the only one in control up until now. "Neal, do you mind leaving us? It's clear you are something of a distraction. Send out Max if Logan still wants two guards here."

"All right. Sorry, buddy," Neal apologized to Kimble and left.

Kimble scowled as he watched him leave and rubbed his wings together in irritation. "You cocksuckin', little cuntfaced whore!" he muttered with a nasty show of his sharp edged teeth. Stupid 'Shay had blown his last chance for the bright hot plasma and he was pissed.

"Kimble!" Beast scolded, demanding the pilot's attention. He hadn't been sure who the comment was directed at, only that it had been so cruel. "That's enough of that."

"How long has he been like this?" Warren asked. He would be the first to admit he didn't know Kimble that well. He recalled meeting Kimble once with Remy a long time ago but Kimble had been normal then, not all screwed up like this. Watching the fractured pilot now was just plain creepy. He could understand Logan's reservations about leaving him unsupervised.

Beast was happy to explain. "He got hit with an oversized plasma burst and was melted. He didn't take it well, as you can see. I was hoping that he would stabilize with more power but it's clear the voices are a separate problem. Remy's working on that now. I hope he comes back soon."

'Shay was still grumpy now and curled up, turning her back on everyone. Her wrists and ankles were uncomfortable and heavy, she now wore four large bracelets as per Logan's orders. These new devices were different than the tracker bracelets, each one held a tiny battery and was capable of giving out a large static shock, not dissimilar to invisible dog fencing. If she were to go past the markers located only just a few feet from the edges of the house, the bracelets would set off an alarm and give her a large shock, hopefully disabling her so she could be forcibly returned to a cell. She hadn't been back to the house five minutes before Wolverine had thrust the bracelets at Henry, demanding they be applied at once. Beast didn't argue and now there they were, as good as chains.

Seth came over to his brother and reached out to gently rub his shoulder. "Don't be mad."

"Careful, Seth," Fallen cautioned. "He's crabby and he's had a charge. He's dangerous."

Lin came out, grabbing Kimble's discarded shirt and wrapping it around his head.**_ "We done the baddest things. Stay away,"_** he said in a tiny voice filled with sadness. He looked up at the big empty sky. **_"We shouldn't even be out here. It's too big."_**

"I don't care," Seth said and climbed up on the lawn chair to hug his brother. "Come on, Kim. Come out and talk to me."

"I wants plasma," Kimble grumbled softly, still complaining.

"I know. Just forget about it for now," Seth replied, petting him gently. He was happy Kimble was back in some sort of control, he had missed Kimble very much and was eager to show it. He was rubbing both of Kimble's shoulders now, happy when Kimble closed his eyes and arched his back a little, a soft smile of happiness on his face. It felt good to be touched and Kimble didn't hide it.

Warren watched this in confusion. He was told Seth was Kimble's brother, but his touch was so gentle and intimate, Kimble's response to it was unrestrained. Angel was like Scott in that he was of the mind that men just don't touch each other like that, brothers or not, and this made him uncomfortable. Yet, if you regarded these strange creatures as children, it made perfect sense.

Seth's cell phone bleeped and he paused in his gentle massaging to answer it. "Yello?"

"Bonjour, mon fils. How's it going?"

"Oh, Remy! We've got the best news!" Seth answered, thrilled that Gambit had called. It had been days since Gambit and his small team had left for Yosemite and even though the thief called frequently there had been no news to tell. The Games Master hadn't arrived yet. Storm had dropped off Gambit in the National Park with Cyclops, Jean and Rogue as back up support. It was looking like having all those heavy hitters away from the house was a waste, nothing seemed to be happening out there.

"What news is dat?"

"Kimble can charge up from the sun!" Seth blurted out, unable to hide his happiness.

"What? Kimble ain't supposed to be outside. What's goin' on?" Remy whined, clearly upset.

"It's okay. Wolverine put these special bracelets on him and --"

"Wait up dere, buddy. Henry dere?"

"Yes."

"Let me talk to 'im, s'il vous plait."

Seth gave the phone over and Henry took over the explanations.

Kimble looked up at Seth, confused. He hadn't realized Seth even owned a phone, never mind that fact that he was free to use it. "Who wuz that you wuz talkin' to?"

"Remy. He calls me all the time."

"You kin use the phone?"

"Yeah, why?"

Kimble didn't answer, but shuddered in fear and remembered pain, turning his head away.

"Kimble? Would you like to speak with Gambit?" Henry asked a few moments later, holding out the phone. He hadn't been warned of Kimble's aversion and didn't hear Remy's urgent garbled complaint from the other end. "It's been a long time and I'm sure he'd like to hear from you."

"I cain't use no phone!" Kimble said, tensing up. His eyes were big with fear.

"Why not?" Beast asked in confusion, still holding the phone out.

"Cuz I don't want no belt whippin' on me!"

"Whatever are you talking about?"

"He can't use the phone," Seth explained quickly, reaching for it. "It's okay, I'll talk to Remy."

"No!" Kimble shouted as the phone came much too close for his liking. He was afraid he would be forced to use it. He squirmed away and hopped down onto the patio stones, panting for breath hysterically now. He cupped his ears with his hands and shuffled away, dangerously close to a house marker. He began to blurt out in a hysterical rush, "No phone! No rapin'! No lovin'! No killin'! No cats! No babies! No chocolate! No castles in the snow! No Master! No belt! No, no belt fer me, please!"

Kimble's guards reacted quickly. Fallen took a step forward and hastily used a shield to put Kimble in a box, forming it around him and keeping him away from the house marker. She had no desire to see him get zapped. He didn't resist her, he curled up tightly inside of it, comforted by the confinement and his words drifted off into Lin's as he tucked himself away.

"What's going on?" Henry complained, completely baffled by what just happened.

Seth was horrified and apologized quickly into the phone. "I'm sorry, Remy. Henry didn't know. I forgot to tell him. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Gambit's gettin' real used to this," Remy said with an exasperated sigh. His voice betrayed his fear. _Did Kimble say 'babies'? It came out right after 'cats'. Jesus, I don' wanna know. I really, really don't. _"Jus' don't ask him again. It's cool you all experimentin' and stuff, but mebbe you should just put Kim somewhere quiet, bien?"

"Fallen's got him quiet now. When are you coming home?"

"Don't know. Gambit's gettin' real pissed off. Dis takin' way too long."

"I thought you said the Games Master would be there."

"Trishnar say March. Dere's t'irty one days in March, buddy. T'day's only de fo'teenth. Got plenty more days to go."

"That sucks."

"Take care of my Kimble. Remember, keep 'im in someplace small, bien? He'll be quiet dere. I gotta go now. I'll call ya back in a few hours."

"Okay, bye."

Seth hung up just as Logan returned to stand slouched and angry in the doorway of the house. Seth was on the lawn chair, Kimble was contained in a shield with a shirt wrapped all cock eyed around his head. "What? This freak show ain't over yet?"

"We were interrupted," Henry said, helping Fallen bring Kimble back to the lawn chair.

"Yeah, well it's over now. You kids can play some more tomorrow. It'll be dark soon and I want this circus packed up and back inside. You know the bounty hunters'll be all over this."

"What makes you say that? The attacks have stopped," Seth said, looking around them fearfully.

"They stopped 'cause they couldn't get inside. Now yer brother's comin' outside. It's gonna start up again, just you wait 'n see. They hafta be watchin' the house. Yer little experiment's probably gonna stir up a hornet's nest of trouble."

The words were no sooner out of Logan's mouth when a plasma fireball, looking for all the world like a miniature comet, streaked across the sky and slammed into the house just above them with a bang, shattering through a window and engulfing one of the upstairs rooms in flames. The hunters were here.


	2. Chapter 2

(Two)

"Get the Siskans outta here!" Logan bellowed, stepping out and grabbing Seth like so much meat. He gave the boy a shove towards the house, giving up comfort for speed. In an odd twist of fate, it wasn't one of his teammates that responded to the order, it was Zander.

The Punisher dissolved Fallen's shield like it was nothing, making his former Mistress gasp in surprise. He tore away the shirt Lin had wrapped around his head and tossed it aside before standing strong and tall in front of Wolverine, as much a warrior as the man before him. "I kin fights!"

"Don't be ridiculous, it's you they want! Get yer brother outta here and down to the Danger Room on the double!" Wolverine answered, still a little awed by the change in Kimble. Zander was powerful and strong, Kimble's polar opposite, intimidating just in his stance alone.

Zander reluctantly obeyed, and that only because he knew Logan was right. He moved towards the house and his brother, grabbing Seth and hauling him inside with no more gentleness than Wolverine had. Logan had directed him to the Danger Room because it was the most protected room in the Mansion complex and the understood gathering place in times of emergency.

Seth struggled and clawed at his brother as he was carried away like baggage, but it was a useless gesture. This was the strong father figure who had always protected him, only with a different face and voice. The Punisher's expression was cold, all business as he rushed Seth to the elevators, actually hauling the guy up over his shoulder as Seth continued to thrash at the rough handling.

From his awkward position, Seth had watched his precious Mistress take flight, joining Warren up in the sky without hesitation. She was a powerful telekinetic and had wasted no time in shielding the house from further damage. The elevator chimed and the doors opened, Zander took them inside and they were gone.

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Outside the house, Logan was busy. With Cyclops gone he was essentially next in command at the moment. He couldn't help but feel a surge of pride – in most situations like this, the attacked would be fleeing the enemy, but instead, students were pouring from the building and forming automatically into squads, just as he and the others had trained them. The kids might be teenagers or less, but self defense training was mandatory from their first day at school here. To facilitate this, they were often clumped into squads of four or five and made to learn teamwork and cooperation. It was paying off in droves this day.

"Red team, to the left! Green team to the right! Purple team in the middle an' I want white team up in the skies, now!" Logan ordered, pleased beyond words when he was instantly obeyed. There might have been some screwing around in class, but the kids were all business now.

"Need a hand?" Storm asked, swooping by overhead. She was already conjuring thick heavy clouds, a moment later it was raining, all the better to put out the fire. She also tossed him down a radio and a real prize, one of the restraining collars that had come from Cerise. Those collars had come in handy in situations like this and had been used quite a bit in the earlier raids. They were now standard operating equipment and given to the team leaders out in the field to assist in subduing the more powerful mutants who had tried to claim the bounty on Kimble.

Wolverine grinned his toothy smile up at Storm. "Yeah, how about some recon? Find out what are we dealing with out there?"

She nodded at him and was off after the others. Wolverine clipped the radio to his shoulder and off he was himself, conducting the perimeter defense.

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Fallen had responded just as quickly as Logan had. As soon as Seth was safely in the house, she had flown up into the air and spread out as big of a shield as she could handle, trying to block the house from more bombs.

Fallen had performed well at the Friends of Humanity rally and since then had been asked to participate in a couple of practice sessions with the Blue team. Jean in particular had been working with Fallen, giving the pilot some formal training in shields and defensive tactics. Fallen was familiar with her own abilities, but had never worked with them in a structured setting, she had never pushed herself to see what her limits were. Truth be told, she'd been having a blast and had recently been entertaining thoughts of officially joining a squad. The only thing holding her back was she wasn't sure if she could pass the physical requirements. Yes, she was probably the healthiest she'd ever been right now, but she was no athlete. Her strength came from her telekinesis, she wasn't used to working without it and all the teams were expected to be able to do so, in case they were ever depowered or incapacitated during a mission.

Being on the team was the furthest thing from Fallen's mind at the moment, she was more concerned with saving the house. She could see two more fireballs on their way from the back acreage and over the trees, and did her best to move into position. She would have preferred to do the boomerang thing and sling the shots right back at who fired them, but the truth was this was still a residential area and she couldn't risk having a blast go in the wrong direction. Not to mention she'd probably set all those fine trees on fire.

Fallen swooped and caught the fireballs as they came, using her shield like a scoop. That was part one – she had stopped them from hitting the house, now what?

"Fallen! Down here!"

She looked down and smiled gratefully when she saw Iceman there, iced up and already forming two huge blocks of ice out on the lawn. He used the ambient moisture in the air, but having the pool close by was handy as well. She dropped the plasma balls down, careful lest they explode, and they landed perfectly into the ice blocks Bobby had made. They fizzled and popped, melting the ice down quickly before sputtering out harmlessly themselves. He gave her a thumbs up and she smiled, feeling a rush just from being so helpful.

Her defense was effective. The blast had been aimed right over where Kimble had been and designed to block retreat to the house. The first shot had gone high and the element of surprise had been lost. Now Kimble and Seth were safe and there was no further damage to the house. The fire was now out and more mutants were rushing to the fight. Whoever had started this was sure to regret it.

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Logan raced across the grass and to the tree line. Time and time again he had complained that the forest was kept too close to the house but it just looked so darn pretty he'd been told. He had planted many motion sensitive cameras and alarms out there but clearly someone with talent had taken them out or bypassed them. The house alarms hadn't gone off until the first plasma ball hit the Mansion.

A moment later and Logan was in the thicket, scratched by brambles as he made his way through. He popped claws and hacked at the branches, feeling the sting and burn as the metal blades slid out. He didn't mind the pain, it meant a brawl was coming and he was never one to turn down a good fight. And it would be coming -- he could already hear the shouts of a battle beginning just in front of him and was forced to scramble to a halt when a body went flying at him out of nowhere. It wasn't an attacker, Max was out in the trees just ahead of him throwing the enemy about with telekinetic shoves and slamming them into the trees. It was a good defensive maneuver, the attackers never laid a finger on him.

Logan ducked as the man hit the tree next to him with a bone crunching thud and fell motionless to the ground. Wolverine snatched at him for a closer look, the man was dressed as any merc but with a notable exception, he had a double dagger pin at his throat, the mark of the Assassins Guild. Logan snarled with impatience, he'd thought he'd done enough damage to the Guild when Kimble had first come home -- it seemed he'd thought wrong.

He turned his head to the right and saw Max still at it, taking two assailants at a time with surprising ease. All those classes were paying off and it made Logan smile. Well, that was until he recognized one of them as belonging to the Thieves' Guild. That was unsettling, just how many Guilds were out there? This was more than just bounty hunters, he realized, this was a full out assault by Jael.

The thought angered him and made his hands twitch, he'd done no actual fighting himself yet. As fate would have it, he didn't have to go far. He'd taken only one step when there was a flash of light and an unexpected group of party crashers appeared right in front of him.

Logan got his confirmation of just who was in charge of this when the flash of light revealed Razel standing there with his companions, Shakra and Marcus, right on cue. They had teleported right up to the house and the flash of light had come from Razel's 'port. Before anyone could shout in surprise, Logan pounced, launching himself at Razel and grabbing him about the throat.

Razel's startled cry was choked off and he vanished, taking Logan with him. Because he used touch to teleport his passengers along with him, Razel was now moving not just himself, he'd taken along a very irate stowaway. Razel 'ported and 'ported again in a hysterical panic, never going very far because he had to be careful about the trees. Like Nightcrawler, Razel had to know where he was teleporting to, a blind 'port could have him landing inside a tree or a rock, a rather painful way to die. Taking advantage of that fact, Logan hung on for dear life, grateful that a jaunt with Razel wasn't as nauseating as a 'port with Nightcrawler could sometimes be. He dug his heels in and growled into the ear of his host. "You can keep 'portin' all ya want, bub, you ain't gettin' rid of me so easy!" He next began to bite, breaking Razel's concentration.

Razel howled with pain and his next jaunt landed badly. They ended up on the grass closer to the house and tumbled to the ground as Razel's legs gave way. Logan wouldn't let him go. He flipped the smaller man onto his back and decked him hard, grunting with satisfaction when he heard his jaw snap. He had very little sympathy for this one after his kidnapping. He wouldn't kill, but he wasn't above doing some damage. He raised his fist, offering a second helping, and Razel surrendered with a whimper, blood dripping from his nose and mouth, some of his teeth had been shattered as well. Logan grabbed the restraining collar Storm had given him and snapped it around Razel's neck, finishing this. He called for one of the students posted at the house to grab Razel and haul him away. The words were hardly out of his mouth before he heard the rough staccato beat of automatic gunfire over by the waterfall.

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When the first plasma blast hit the house, Warren and Fallen had wasted little time before leaping into the air. Fallen did her best to cover the house, but Warren couldn't help her there. He went right for the source of the problem, following the smoke trail that remained in the air from the first plasma bomb. From his high position, he could see a group of thirty or more men milling around the access road by the waterfall. They hadn't been there just a few minutes ago – the Mansion had patrol squads in the air circling the house at all times and they would have reported the activity in. The unwanted visitors must have been called for when Kimble was first seen by enemy spotters after Fallen had taken him to the flower field. Warren hesitated just a moment before making a defensive strike -- as good as he was, that was too large a group to take on by himself -- but smiled when Neal joined his side.

Neal was a plasma producer of high skill, he had learned how to manipulate small plasma explosions to create enough heat to keep him aloft. He could, in a word, fly. He was blasting through the air leaving his own small trail of golden smoke and with a whoop and a holler, called Warren on to join him. The pair swooped down on what looked to be the base of operations for this little assault.

Neal was quite effective, blasting his way through the center of them and scattering little plasma bombs the size of golf balls about. They hit the ground like grenades, sending ordinance and men flying. Warren did his best to cover Neal's back, looking out for armed men and blowing them down. They say the wing of a goose can break a man's arm. Well, Warren's wings, artificial though they might be, were just as powerful and he was doing the men some damage.

The pair were joined by students from the areal classes, Logan's White team had arrived and now trouble was raining down on the invaders from the sky. Like the flying monkeys from Oz, the kids were grabbing men and taking off with them, flying just high enough to stun them by dropping them back down. Most of the attackers gathered here were from the Guilds and they didn't have a proper defense for this. The plan had been that the mutants Jael had sent along were going to do some real damage to the house first, but that was wasn't happening, the fight had gotten turned around on them instead. They took some shots up in the sky with machine guns and flying knives, but there were more telekinetics among the flyers than flappers and they were just as handy with shields as they were with flight. When Storm caught up with them at last and the lightning started coming down, the men scrambled and fled, scattering in all directions.

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In spite of his youth, Max was having a blast. This was better than training class because he didn't have to hold back out here. He was using telekinetic pulses to throw down the enemy, a new technique he'd just been taught. He had to be careful with them, many of his classmates were out here going after the Assassins with as much gusto as he was. He had seen the flash of light as Razel appeared and had hardly taken a step that way when he saw Razel vanish, taking Wolverine with him. Unfortunately, Razel had left his companions behind and they were not pleased.

Max barely had to time to raise a defensive shield when Shakra let fly with her quills. Max wasn't the only one out here, he watched in dismay as a couple of his nearby squad mates cried out and fell, knocked out by her bio-toxins. He launched himself at her, shouting, but was met on the way by Marcus. They clashed in a tangle of feathers and limbs, an even match in powers but not in size and skill. Marcus was a large man and heavily muscled, his fists were like iron bearing down on him. This was no longer fun for Max as he was pushed back and bent down under Marcus' heavy blows. He screamed when he heard something snap and break in one of his wings, the fragile limb was crunched under Marcus' heavy boots and pinned.

Max was rescued when in a cloud of black and purple smoke Nightcrawler suddenly appeared by his side. Max fell on to his back, stunned and gasping, and could only watch in dazed amazement as Marcus feebly tried to defend himself against his unseen opponent. As fast as Marcus would try to strike with his fists, Kurt would vanish and reappear only to hit him from behind or the side, well out of reach. Nightcrawler was more than just an athlete, he was a top caliber acrobat, 'porting around Marcus and socking him in every pressure point he could reach with his thick, three fingered hands, grinning devilishly all the while. With each teleport, Kurt left behind little clouds of sulfureous smoke and right up close, they were as good as choking Marcus as well. Marcus didn't take long to fall, he was outmatched and outclassed, unable to fight what he couldn't see.

Shakra had come to Marcus' defense, but Kurt hadn't come alone. He had brought Manny along with him from the house. Manny might have only begun his defense training, but his invulnerability gave him an edge against the woman. He jumped on Shakra, using his larger size to toss her down. All was fair in love and war, he used a rock to stun her, doing his best to soften the blow but in truth didn't much care if he hurt her seriously. She had invaded his home with malicious intent and she was getting what she deserved as far as he cared.

Wolverine stumbled back through the brush just in time to see the end of this little brawl. He used his radio to call for someone to come and collect the downed villains, happy to see that not only did they have the upper hand in this scrap, but they had captured Jael's upper echelon, this had to be a crippling blow for the terrorist.

He moved on, following the last of the gunfire to the waterfall. There wasn't much left for him to do when he got there except play round up, most of the enemy had been scattered or captured. In spite of the size of the assault, the kids and their squads had taken care of business effectively. Their casualties had been light, no one had been lost, though some of the younger kids were beaten up pretty good. All in all, he couldn't complain. The kids had performed well and he doubted they would be attacked again any time soon.

Not all the fighting had been taking place outside of the house, some defensive work had been done from within. Charles Xavier might have been a cripple in a wheelchair, but he was hardly defenseless. Once alerted to the goings on, he played delightful turnabout and entered the minds of some of the Assassins and Thieves, driving them back onto their brethren with their minds warped and confused. They fell upon each other in insane frenzy, fighting and quarreling with each other. Savage fighting broke out and some of the Assassins slaughtered each other although that was not Charles' intention. Still, the damage was pretty complete and he doubted that they would dareattempt this again.

Those who hadn't been killed suffered psychological damage from the Professor's tampering. Charles didn't like to use his power this way, but this was self defense. A good number of the afflicted later found themselves morally compromised — they suffered from having a conscience and could no longer assassinate or steal without being wracked with guilt.

The group of Thieves that had allied themselves with Jael were from Henri's branch of the family. Etienne would never have agreed to anything against his dear cousin and friend, Remy LeBeau. The fallout from this fiasco was felt for weeks and Henri's Thieves soon fell under attacks from the heads of the Assassins Guild as if this whole thing was his fault. The Assassins hadn't liked their ranks being decimated by mutants or from crazed thieves. Later, when Etienne heard about it, he couldn't stop from laughing.

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Moments after the fight had begun, SHIELD had been alerted and were even now sending a squad and a clean up crew. The X-men had this pretty much in hand by the time Fury's team arrived, capturing as many of the assailants as they could and packaging them up for shipment. All told, they had gathered well over fifty members of both Guilds and ten of Jael's top people, the most prized being his top three – Marcus, Shakra and Razel. They wouldn't be going free any time soon. While not as good as capturing Jael himself, the terrorist had received a devastating blow to his organization.

Nick Fury showed up twenty minutes later when the dust settled. He was pleased at his catch for the day, but had some questions, too. He glared at Logan who was now covered with blood. "This is about the bounty, isn't it?"

Logan opted for honesty. He didn't want to alienate this man who was so often his ally. "Yeah."

"What is so special about Kimble that Jael would send his top guys out to catch him?"

This was where things got tricky. Logan didn't want to even try to explain the Game to Fury, not when he wasn't so sure about it himself. He also couldn't go on about Jael wanting Kimble as a super weapon, that would only inspire the man to try and take Kimble for himself. Wolverine sighed and crossed his arms before answering, "Near as we can tell, he's got this idea that Kimble used to belong to him and he's takin' it all personal that he ain't bein' returned. It's more about savin' face than the fact that Kimble's really worth something. Kimble's just property, nuthin' more."

Fury squinted at him, chewing on his cigar thoughtfully. He couldn't help but be grateful that his team had been called in, they now had quite the load of wanted criminals to return to prison, some of them from the Most Wanted list. He was really in the X-men's debt, not the other way around, and wasn't in a position to push anything as far as Kimble went. The guy hadn't been involved in the fighting and he was still secure at the house. Kimble could be found anytime he wanted, so he was willing to let this go. For now.

"All right, but you're having a harder time convincin' me that this Kimble fella isn't something SHIELD shouldn't be looking into, Logan. I know you're not telling me everything. I'm only hoping this doesn't turn around and bite you in the ass."

"Don't worry, Nick. If we need you we'll give you a call."

"I'll be holdin' you to that," Nick Fury said with a nod and walked off, shouting orders to his men. They had a full paddy wagon to take back to the SHIELD prison and he was happy enough for now. He packed up his crew and left, leaving the X-men to their repairs.


	3. Chapter 3

(Three)

A couple of days later, after the dust had settled and repairs were already under way, Seth walked into the War Room. He'd knocked softly knowing Logan was there, but the man pretty much ignored him. Wolverine sat in the back of the room, in a space set aside as a security station. He was seated in front of a long row of video monitors, most showing various views of the house and grounds. Since the attack he had hardly left this station, he was making notes on how to improve security and was careful to make sure the remnants of the bounty hunters didn't try to return for a second wave. So far it was all clear, but he was watching all of the screens carefully. At the moment, Wolverine had his eyes on one screen in particular, one that showed Kimble sunning himself up on the widow's peak.

It had only been two days since the discovery of Kimble's being able to charge from the sun. The pilot had been allowed to go there to sun himself twice a day and recharge under strict supervision. No one was inclined to let Kimble stray from the house and the peak was easily watched from the sky as well as from the grounds. There was a guard up there, just out of sight of the monitor, Kimble was never left alone. He still had his tracking bracelets on and there was a corresponding blip on the screen below the monitor showing they were still activated against the house markers. Kimble was allowed out to charge for a couple of hours twice a day, once in the morning and again in the afternoon. It was morning now and close to the end of Kimble's session. Logan was nervous the whole time the pilot was exposed like this, he was still concerned about any remaining bounty hunters lingering nearby.

Seth walked up to Logan cleared his throat, trying to get his attention.

"I heard ya comin' in, kid. Whatcha want?" Wolverine said gruffly, not even looking at him.

"Excuse me, sir. I've got the file you requested."

Logan turned in the swivel chair and held out his hand. He saw the momentary hesitation in Seth's eyes and the determination curling the corners of his mouth. He knew Seth was still slightly afraid of him after all the violence the poor Siskan had witnessed, but was trying really hard to get over it. Zander had brought Seth down to the safety of the Danger Room as ordered but the attack on the house still had Seth quite shaken. He had hid out for most of the past few days, doing his work on the Lucky Dragon where he felt safer and had only now just been coming out. Wolverine knew his gruff manner wasn't helping at the moment so he gave the pilot a small, reassuring smile.

Seth was a little more at ease as he waited patiently while Logan took the folder and flipped through it quickly. It didn't take long for Logan to see what he'd already suspected. Sabretooth had never made it to the SHIELD maximum security prison.

Wolverine had made good use of Seth's talents and often sent the Siskan out for information. Logan had learned that just this morning there had been a serious attempt by Jael to rescue his compatriots imprisoned in one of Fury's large facilities, Jael wanted his top three guys back and had squandered even more resources to that fruitless end. He'd sent a large band of mutants out to demolish the site, not counting on Nick Fury's planning ahead. Fury had his own mutants squads in the service of the United States government, mutants just as powerful as those sent by Jael. The clash had been loud and caught mostly on tape for public viewing afterwards. Jael's team got spanked, locked up, and was now out of commission. Jael had failed on national televison no less --- how embarrassing --- and he'd suffered severe losses. This would set the terrorist back more seriously than losing his Morlock tunnel lair, Logan assumed hopefully. Things might quiet down for a long time to come.

In the media frenzy of Jael's misfortunate attempt to free his followers, something had caught Logan's attention. Some of the most notorious killers' names in the facility Jael had attacked had been mentioned for hype and one was conspicuously missing. There was no way Fury would've had Sabretooth executed this early, there were steps that had to be followed, hearings made. His half brother hadn't escaped, that would have been major news. No, the guy had simply done a fade, one that was probably illegal and likely against his will. Some shadow agency had come along, pulled a deal with the government behind Fury's back, and snapped him up, no doubt wanting the assassination skills he possessed. Noting the change he'd seen in Creed, Logan almost felt sorry for the guy. Whatever good Kimble had done was sure to be blasted away. Creed had fallen off the face of the earth, sure to show up again at the least opportune time

Logan looked up at Seth who was still there. "Thanks, kid. You did a great job," he said, trying to sound encouraging. Seth was a lot like Kimble in that he thrived on being thanked and appreciated, but unlike Kimble, Seth's easy going and submissive manner made him far more welcome. While Logan would never apologize for his actions, he was determined not to mishandle him like he had Kimble.

"You're welcome," Seth replied and bowed slightly before leaving.

Logan snickered softly and turned back to the viewing screens.

Wolverine had come to truly appreciate Seth's skills as a hacker. He was quite good at breaking into top secret systems undetected and waltzing out with whatever Logan had asked him to retrieve. This file had been buried deep in the government's massive main frame, but Logan just knew it was there. Wolverine wasn't so stupid as to think someone wouldn't try to pull something like this.

Wolverine challenged Seth to find his proof, another little play in the game that had started between them. As Remy was a good thief on the outside with a reputation to maintain, so Seth had become an electronic one with the same desire to be the best. So far, everything Wolverine had sent him to find, Seth had been able to discover in time.

Logan's concern here was security. The bounty was still active on Kimble in spite of all the losses on the side of the bad guys and he knew they would all have to remain on their toes for some time to come. Since that last big attack, he'd gleefully spent a good chunk of Charles' money on enhanced security systems and defenses. His black market connections had come in handy. Several machine guns and rocket launchers lay tucked away in their cases, oiled with loving care alongside some Tasers and canisters of knock out gas. He'd also stocked up the reserve food supply and upgraded the water filtrations systems. He had set ups designed that isolated them from the City main water and power supplies so they could never be tampered with. The house might look normal, but it was really a fortress just waiting to be tested. They hadn't had their first big challenge yet since the upgrades, but he knew it wouldn't be long in coming.

Logan continued to watch Seth's brother as he sunned himself on the widow's peak. He caught a glimpse of something in the background and noticed Karen lingering in the doorway leading up to the peak, watching the pilot as well. He was aggravated by her determination to speak with Kimble. He knew it was her job, but Kimble was just too dangerous and unpredictable. He was even more concerned now that Kimble was snapping out of his dementia and becoming stronger.

Wolverine got out of his chair and stretched. He made the excuse that he was done here, but was sure to make his way up through the house and look in on Karen and Kimble just the same.

----------------------

Karen watched Kimble as he sunned himself on the widow's peak. His personal escort was here and watchful. It was Max today, only the telekinetics were allowed to watch over the Siskan. They were most likely able to control him and they could fly after him if he tried to take off. They boy was seated in the corner of the peak, playing merrily away on the Game Boy Gambit had given him, his face all concentration and frustration, he wasn't winning. One wing was splinted and bandaged, a couple of the small bones had ben broken from Marcus, but he would soon be on the mend. It was just as well he didn't need his wings to fly, it wouldn't keep him from helping out with Remy's wayward Siskan.

Karen looked the pilot over from her covert position and figured it must be the Lover still in control of the body at this moment because his hair was neatly tied back as it had been in the data files she had from before he'd left. He was also topless, something 'Shay almost never was. Lin wouldn't have been so comfortable out here in the open without his shroud, either. The pilot was sitting on the railing, warming himself with his wings fanned out, his eyes half closed and the tiniest of smiles on his lips.

Kimble was indeed the happiest he'd been in a while. He'd managed his journey up through the house from the lower levels without incident, avoiding the rooms where there might be cats. Ever since that last incident, he wouldn't go near any of the Professor's numerous felines.

He'd been up here on the widow's peak for a while and was warm and comfortable, content. The damage to his face and neck had faded considerably over the past couple of days as he'd absorbed the sun's plasma. He was almost healed now and even feeling zippy enough to consider asking Max if he could take a quick buzz around the perimeter of the house. It hadn't taken that long for him to recharge.

He looked up at Karen as she came out onto the peak and smiled timidly. He saw her beautiful red hair and tore his eyes away, swallowing heavily with his head down. He still had his weakness for redheads, but she would have been beautiful to him anyway. Her shine spoke of life and happiness, things that seemed so far away from his poor shattered mind. He was lonely now with Gambit gone and could use some sort of distraction, but simply didn't trust himself or the others to behave. He shifted uncomfortably away from her when she sat next to him on the railing, not wanting her to get too close.

_If she touches you I'll pitch her right off this roof!_ Lakotashay warned from deep inside, justifying Kimble's concerns. She was all put out that Kimble was reviving, even more so by his attraction to this female. Anything that inspired him to live was dangerous.

'_Shay ain't gonna do nuthin',_ Zander promised him._ She cain't always have 'er stupid way alla the time. Knock yerself out kid. This one's real fine._

Kimble didn't want any of this and kept his eyes down, hoping Karen would just go away. No such luck. She smiled at him and came closer.

"Hello, there. My name is Karen. I don't know if you remember, but we met before." She offered him her hand. She was satisfied this was indeed the Kimble personality since he didn't immediately spit insults at her in that ugly high pitched girlish voice of 'Shay's. That one she had come to despise. Kimble she was interested in most, this was the personality Remy was fighting for, the one had been trying the most to reach after that mess with the Professor's cat. Though she and Kimble had spoken before briefly, it wasn't enough for her to get to know the Lover well. She was hoping to change that now.

Kimble shook her hand and released it quickly, breaking the contact as fast as he could before 'Shay did anything stupid. He was painfully aware of Karen's heat and bright healthy shine. "M' name's Kimble."

"Yes, I know. I've been watching you for some time now. The Professor brought me here to look after Molly, but he also wanted me to be here for you if you needed someone to talk to," she offered, hoping to set him at ease. She could see he was being very nervous and shy.

"Molly?" Kimble asked, wanting only to direct the conversation away from himself.

"She's the young lady who works in Henry's lab now."

"The one what makes such good coffee."

Karen smiled. "Yes, that's the one."

"She's real nice," Kimble commented.

"Yes she is. She's taken quite an interest in you. She made your shirts."

"Really? That wuz real nice. How come she cain't talk?"

"She doesn't have vocal chords like you and me. They were damaged as a small child. She talks with her hands instead. I can teach you if you like."

"All right," Kimble said, just being polite. He recalled little or nothing of Lin's failed attempts to learn, so much of the past weeks was lost in the fog. He had noticed Molly about, Seth had even whispered to him something about Remy having an interest in her. He found her pretty, liking her even before he'd been told that she'd made the special shirts he'd worn. He didn't need them so much now, a good enough charge kept him warm in the house without them. At the moment, he was physically as close to normal as he'd ever been.

Karen smiled at him for accepting her offer to learn how to sign and he noted her happiness. He felt awkward and uncomfortable with this beautiful woman so close and wanted only to leave. He could feel Lakotashay getting antsy.

He turned sharply when he heard Logan come out onto the widow's peak. Logan growled a greeting to Karen and stood behind her. He was following her, knowing she'd come up here to see Kimble. He wasn't about to let Lakotashay bully his woman anymore. When he saw it was in fact Kimble this time, the Lover, he put an arm around her possessively and gave Kimble a look that carried a message that was all too clear. _This one's mine._

Kimble levitated from his seat on the rail, drifting back to the floor of the peak and away from Logan's woman. He flapped his wings to stretch, keeping his eyes down submissively. He figured retreat was better than letting 'Shay take over, he was stronger now with the sun feeding him and wanted to maintain his control. The longer he was here, the easier that would be. "I gots ta go now," he said, turning away. His earlier desire to fly had vanished, he only wanted to go inside and find a place to curl up and sleep. Preferably somewhere Karen and Logan with his bright ugly shine couldn't follow.

"When you're ready to learn how to sign, I'll be around." Karen's voice carried an edge of irritation. Kimble's behavior clearly showed he was intimidated by Wolverine and now he was leaving. She had hoped to keep him talking.

Kimble nodded without committing to anything and nodded towards the door, alerting Max, and they left, making their way back into the house.

"Why won't you let me talk to him alone?" Karen said in irritation as Kimble left, pulling away from Logan. "He's not going to hurt me."

"Yeah, right. That ain't what Gambit said in his report. Kimble can't be trusted. You want to talk to him, fine. But not alone. I'm sayin' that as Head of Security so don't even try to argue."

"Fine. I'll set something up with the Professor, but I don't want you there. He's afraid of you."

"I ain't gonna do nuthin' ta him so long as he stays quiet."

"I'm holding you to that," she said, returning to him and giving him a kiss.


	4. Chapter 4

(Four)

Later that day, well into the late afternoon and when he was sure Karen was someplace far away, Kimble once more sat on the roof, sunning himself. He was drowsy and comfortable in the late heat of the day. He dozed lightly with his chin up on the railing, dreaming of warm and gentle things, of hands touching him in love. Sheyman came to him in his vision of peace, dropping down from the sky like a wingless pilot. "It's time Kimble," Sheyman said, touching his face and making him smile.

Kimble laughed in his sleep. "Time fer me ta gos with you?"

"No. Time fer ya ta finds yer angel."

Kimble woke abruptly with a startled snort. He rubbed his eyes and looked around him, momentarily confused as to where he was, the dream had seemed so real. Max was on guard duty again, but had dozed off himself in the warm sun, leaning up against the door to the downstairs. In all the times Kimble had come out to sun himself, not once had there ever been a problem, he hadn't misbehaved. Being escorted had become something more of a formality than a necessity, and Max wasn't the only guard to grow lax in his responsibilities. More than once Kimble had to wake one of them when he was ready to leave.

Kimble shook his head. Stupid dream. He sat up and squinted when he noticed a tiny line of shimmery smoke off in the distance. It was really far away, hardly visible. He shouldn't care, but it seemed to call to him, compelling him to follow it. He wasn't supposed to leave the property, but its call was irresistible.

He quietly rose and stretched his wings, careful not to wake the boy. He wanted to go and check out that strange shimmer, but didn't want to be followed. He just knew they would try to stop him, he was so seldom understood and this was something he wasn't clear on himself, only that he just had to go. He stood over Max and offered no resistance when Zander came out and took control of the body. The Punisher gave Max a sharp blow to the head, stunning him before the sleeping boy ever had a chance to wake. Zander's blow was perfect -- Max rolled over with a groan, out cold but otherwise uninjured. Kimble was certain to get in trouble for this, but the Siskan no longer cared. They had to leave, the call was just too strong for them to ignore.

Zander knew the guard wasn't the last of his troubles. He carefully formed a shield at his wrists and ankles, under the bracelets. It was hard with the restraints dulling his ability to harden the air, but with enough concentration, he managed it just fine. Once finished, he used the shields to pop the bracelets, bracing for the electric shocks. He'd been told that breaking the restraints would zap him just as badly as if he'd passed a house marker. Oddly enough, nothing happened, they just fell off as if they were nothing more than ugly jewelry. His shields had been enough to protect him, it seemed. He didn't pay any mind to that strange fact, that it shouldn't be possible. One bracelet alone would have been enough to fry Sabretooth alone, and he'd had four. He tossed them away, already hearing the house alarms blaring from the broken connection sensors on them. He took off from the roof in a huge burst of speed, hoping they wouldn't be able to catch him too quickly.

------------------

Logan swore and stomped out of the gym. He was drenched in sweat from his workout, one that had just now been rudely interrupted. He could hear the alarm whining and knew what it meant -- Kimble had taken off. He knew Kimble was feeling better and figured this was bound to happen. The best he could hope for was that Kimble was only going for a spin just away from the house or by the lake. He went into the War Room and checked the scanners for the Siskan's location but came up with nothing. Kimble was nowhere in sight. Damn.

--------------------------------

Kimble had flown for a long time and was tired. He was chasing that shimmer of smoke and it was leading him right towards New York City, a place he wasn't supposed to go, but the call was irresistible. He had never flown steady on for so great a distance and even though he could charge from the sun as he traveled, it would never match a full fledged plasma feeding. Zander had relinquished control to Kimble once he felt they were far enough away to be safe. Kimble was wasted, the only thing keeping him aloft was the fact that the sun was very bright today. He would land every so often and catch his breath as his body charged up a little more. Just when he thought he'd gotten close to the smoke, it shimmered away like a mirage and reappeared farther away. At last, he got close enough to smell it. An abandoned warehouse was on fire here just on the edge of the City. It must have just started, there were no alarms and no sirens in the distance announcing the coming of fire trucks, he was one of the first to arrive at the scene. He landed on the rooftop of a nearby building, uncertain of what he should do.

_Ya gots ta go in there,_ Zander said.

_I knows. It just looks scary. _

He turned when he heard two homeless people talking in a nearby alley. A small crowd of locals had gathered to watch the blaze. Their voices came up to him in a worried whisper and one of them pointed to an upper window. "Sheila's up in there! She's trapped!"

Kimble looked back at the warehouse, trying to form a plan. It was a huge red brick warehouse with some boarded up windows. The ones that weren't boarded were smashed and yawned with jagged, broken glass teeth. Smoke and flames were pouring out of most of those windows on the third floor. One window had a strange, shimmering glow to it and he just knew that's where she was, this Sheila. He was supposed to go to her, he knew that now. He had been called all this way to save her. It was the only explanation for what had drawn him here.

_Don' be afraid,_ Zander soothed from inside. _I'll helps ya again if ya needs me._ _Best not be waitin' long. That buildin's got no time!_

Some of the people in the crowd saw him nearby and backed away, frightened by his pilot's body. He didn't care. He was cheered by Zander's faith and leapt up into the air towards the window that had called to him.

Someone saw him take flight and gave a cheer. "Save her! Save her!"

Kimble flew as fast as he could. He reached the window quickly, almost crashing through it in his haste to get inside. Once withing the building itself, he immediately began to cough and choke as smoke flowed over him, making him blind. The flames were all around and the heat from them was intense, reminding painfully of that first plasma overload. As much as he like warm things, he had no desire to be melted again. He gave a soft prayer and dove deeper inside, driven now by a need he couldn't hope to explain.

"Hey! Hey! Anaone here!" he tried to shout above the roar of the fire. It was hard going, this floor of the warehouse was almost completely engulfed.

"Over here!" someone gasped weakly.

Kimble made his way there as best he could. He made a small telekinetic shield to push some of the smoke back as stumbled towards the voice. It was a little clearer back here and the going a bit easier. He hadn't gone far when he found a woman trapped under some debris. The roof above her had collapsed and she'd been caught in the rubble. She was seriously injured, blackened from smoke and bleeding. Kimble reacted immediately, he expanded his protective shield over them both, boards and rubble were still falling down from the ceiling above them.

The woman showed no fear in spite of the collapsing building that burned all around them. She acted calm and as if she was in no pain, something that didn't seem possible considering the way she was trapped. She saw him there as he tried vainly to save her and smiled at him. "I knew you'd come," she said softly.

"Easy now, Sheila," he soothed, feebly trying to remove the wood and metal that held her down.

She put a hand on his arm. "Don't bother. You came for her," she said, moving a small bundle of rags towards him. He picked it up and opened the rags to see what was inside. His eyes opened wide when he saw a tiny baby. "Her name is Angel."

Kimble felt his heart pound and he swayed unsteadily. He thought he might pass out.

"He said you would come," Sheila said wistfully, her eyes dreamy.

"What? Wh- who said I wuz cummin'?" he asked in a daze.

"Sheyman."

Kimble greyed out a little, but forced himself back when some more debris from the ceiling crashed down. He didn't have much time.

The woman continued to speak, unafraid of the mayhem around her. "I saw him in a dream. He told me to tell you that you did good and he's proud of you."

Kimble started to cry, he couldn't help himself. "It ain't true. I'm a monster. I kills evrathin' I touch. It ain't safe ta be with me."

"**Checknasay rehan talef," **Lin whispered, confessing his sins.

"That isn't true," she replied, reaching out to him. She didn't appear frightened or surprised from his different voices. It was as if she had expected them. "I sense no evil in you. Here." She tugged on him, pulling him close. She took a necklace from her throat and put it around his neck. The pendant was a winged woman laying across the shaft of a sword, a copy of the Honor Sword that blazed down his chest. Kimble had never been shown the necklace that Trishnar had given Remy. If he had, he would have recognized it as a match to that one. This new one was the same as another necklace around the neck of the baby. "Angel belongs to you now. She's very special. Take good care of her, always."

"I cain't take care of nobody, but I'll gits her to some people what kin takes care of her right."

"No! It has to be you. Sheyman said it had to be you."

"Sheyman wuz wrong about me," Kimble insisted. But for all of his protests, the more he held this baby, the more he desired to keep her with him always.

Sheila touched his chest, laying her hand over his heart. "Look inside of you. All the strength you need is in there."

"I'm gonna git you outta here."

"No, no...I'm fine. Don't worry about me, son. I'm going to a better place. A good place."

Kimble continued to cry, the soot making black lines down his cheeks.

"Don't cry for me, Kimble. Take good care of my baby. Now go. Hurry."

Kimble staggered up on shaky legs. He was going to ask her how she knew his name when something exploded overhead. He ran for the window in terror and flew out into the sky, gripping the bundle of rags tightly to his chest.

-----------------------------

Kimble flew back to the Mansion without losing his way. Just like he'd found the warehouse, he somehow knew the way back to safety. He used a small telekinetic push to break open a window on the first floor and collapsed on the floor of the Professor's study, a good guess on his part - he was hoping to reach the Professor first instead of someone more volatile like Wolverine. He hadn't wanted to go through the house, he might get stopped before he had a chance to explain where he had gone and how he had acquired his new charge. He was exhausted from the long flight to the warehouse and back and hadn't been convinced at all he would make it all the way home. This adventure had taken the last of the day and the sun was on its way down, taking away his ability to recharge. At least he was home now. He used some of his remaining energy to create a protective telekinetic shield around his body, knowing the others wouldn't be long in coming. The security alarms were buzzing, announcing his return.

The Professor rolled in first, alerted by the sound of breaking glass. "Good Lord, Kimble! Are you all right?"

The Siskan made quite the first impression. He was covered in soot and ash and smelled of burnt things. It looked like part of him had been scorched by the fire, but it didn't seem to be giving him pain. He lay on one side, his sides heaving from his efforts, his wings covering his belly and the bundle of rags he'd brought in with him.

Logan stormed next into Xavier's study. He saw Kimble and began to shout, "Where the hell have you been!" He stopped short when he smelled the smoke and saw Kimble's condition. Clearly Kimble had had some sort of adventure on his little trip to the outside. "What the hell?"

"I hafta talks to ya. Gots ta 'xplain..." Kimble wheezed, looking up at the Professor. He didn't dare seek leniency from Logan, he knew the man had never tried to understand him and didn't expect that to change now.

"Yes, of course. Just take it easy. All of you," Charles said, addressing the small crowd that had now gathered behind him. Fallen and Seth had come, followed by Henry. The alarms had signaled Kimble's return the moment he'd crossed the markers in the trees, there had been enough warning for this group to have come up from the lower levels.

Fallen gasped from behind Logan when she saw Kimble lying in a heap on the floor of the study. She saw the soot and ash that covered him and thought he must be burned. Her biggest fear was that he had some how self-destructed again and was worse than before or that he had attacked someone and SHIELD would have to be called to collect him.

Seth was behind her and he came up to his brother and scowled. "Look at you. You're never satisfied unless you've got us worried half to death!" he complained, more out frustration than real anger. He was relieved Kimble was home.

Kimble grumbled a garbled, pained response and turned away in frustration. He put his head down and tucked his wings tighter around him. This was a mistake coming back here, he saw that now. What a fool he had been to think they would even listen. Remy would have, but he was still so far away and not here to intervene on his behalf. Kimble was on his own.

The Professor held out his arms, pushing everyone back. "Everyone just back off now. Let him speak."

Kimble sighed and tried his best to explain. He wasn't convinced they would understand or if they would even listen, but he had to try. "I knows we done wrong. I knows we ain't suppozta go nowheres, but we had ta go." He raised his wing and they saw the bundle of rags. Angel raised a chubby hand and squawked.

"Aw, don't even tell me...!" Logan complained. He took a step forward, fearful of a repeat incident of the cat.

Charles held him back with one hand. He sensed no distress coming from Kimble nor the baby, only the Siskan's disappointment that he wouldn't be listened to. What shocked him most was that he hadn't sensed the child's presence before now. When Angel rolled her eyes at him and smiled just a little, he understood one thing clearly -- this child had powerful psi shields and had only revealed herself when she had chosen to. This was no ordinary baby. "What is this?" he asked gently.

"This's Angel. I wuz suppozta find 'er. This is what Sheyman wuz talkin' 'bout." Kimble pulled some of the rags back and exposed the infant. She was very tiny, only a few days old and dressed only in a filthy cloth diaper made from a shirt. He lay a soot covered hand on her belly and she gurgled happily up at him. He raised his other hand to her face and she grasped one of his fingers with a soft coo of enjoyment, she was clearly not afraid of him at all even though they had only just met. The Professor squinted in confusion when he thought he sensed a telepathic message pass from the baby to Kimble. He dismissed it as fantasy until he saw Kimble smile at Angel and whisper to her reassuringly in Siskan. Interesting.

Fallen came around Seth and crouched down next to Kimble. She reached for the baby, but the shield blocked her. Kimble wasn't going to let anyone near Angel just yet. "Where's her Momma?" she asked.

"Dead. She wuz in a fire at the warehouse by the river. I tried m' best but I couldn't gits her out. She said fer me ta takes Angel and raise her form' own. She said Sheyman told her I wuz cummin', that I wuz supposta finds her. How could she know 'bouts him if it wuzn't true?" He pleaded with Fallen with his eyes, begging for her to understand.

She didn't really, but she could see he was emotionally and physically wrecked. He needed comfort, not criticism, especially if it might bring the Quitter out. Fallen didn't want that vicious killer of cats anywhere near this child. "Easy, Kim. No one will hurt her."

"We only have your word for that," Logan challenged, interrupting. "How do we know ya didn't steal that baby just to justify that story you been tellin'?"

"Fuck you, you shit eatin', mutherfuckin' asshole!" Zander roared, popping out in Kimble's defense. Unlike the other personalities, Zander was not about to kowtow to this one. He sat up in anger and pushed the protective field out further, knocking Fallen down on her ass. His fists began to glow slightly orange and Logan couldn't help but take a step back. His shoulders began to ache with ghostly memories of pain from when the Punisher had melted his flesh away with those hands. He wasn't eager to feel that again.

"Easy, Zander," Seth protested, putting his hands up. "Just calm down, nice and easy now."

The Professor watched this with rapt curiosity, but didn't move to interfere. He had no fear for Logan's safety or Seth's. Fallen was there and would protect them if the Siskan went berserk. He was just intrigued by the switch in Kimble's personalities and the power they presented. They were four people indeed, he had finally seen them all and knew Remy was right about that. And the fact that the Punisher was someone not to be trifled with.

"Angel belongs ta Kimble!" Zander announced with a snarl, showing his fangs. His voice was strong and commanding, brooking no argument. He came to a crouch and tucked the baby protectively under him between his legs. He wasn't going to let anyone try and snatch her away. Angel was surprisingly quiet in spite of Zander's thundering challenge and raised her hands as if begging the pilot to hold her. The Punisher didn't see it, he was too busy stating his position. "She belongs ta us! Any one of yous even thinks 'bout takin' her, yer gonna hafta deals with me. I am the **ShaRain karesk LaRoo**! The Guardian of the Angel! You don' like it? Well, too fuckin' bad! Yer all done kickin' us around!"

"No one is going to hurt you or the baby," Charles said calmly, trying to keep this from getting any worse. He certainly didn't want a fight breaking out around the child or for Kimble to consider taking off again. "Please, just relax and think this through. We were not quite prepared for this. Have some patience."

Zander backed off a little, placated by Charles' easy tone. He held his head up high and looked over them all, strong and defiant. He was Kimble's power, the fierce strength of his spirit and will to live. "This is Kim's destiny and I'm gonna see to it he has it. Not a one of yous knows what I'm capable of, 'cept maybe Remy. He seen it, still does evra time he looks at me. Pay attention ta that. Nuthin's gonna happen ta this kid. She belongs ta the Lover now, understand?"

_The Lover_, the Professor thought to himself. Many times Remy had said how it was important that the Lover possess Kimble's angel and not the Quitter. Having now seen something of all of Kimble's fractured selves, Charles could see the reasonableness of that belief. It was clear Zander also had that in mind and wasn't going to fight them on it. "Nothing will be decided today, young man. Just calm down," Charles spoke, wishing only to bring Zander down.

"I'll calm down when I knows y'all ain't gonna do nuthin' stupid," the Punisher replied, looking Wolverine square in the eye with no shred of fear.

"Logan, perhaps you should just leave us for the moment," the Professor said, watching the pilot intently. Zander had a powerful presence, something Kimble lacked. _If Kimble were truly re-integrated, the possibilities of his power would be incalculable,_ he thought to himself. No wonder the other mutant factions had fought so bitterly to possess him.

"Not a chance, Professor. This guy's one freakout away from trouble! You saw what he did to your cat! Now he's got a little kid? He can't be trusted!" Wolverine blurted out, refusing to back down to Zander's display of power.

"Out. Now. Please."

"Charlie!"

"Go to the warehouse, check out his story."

Logan growled, but obeyed the Professor and left.

Zander cooled even further as soon as his chief competition had gone. He looked tired now, it took precious energy for him to control the inner flow of plasma contained in his body. He had to see this through before he relinquished control. Once he was gone, the body would be weak and fall asleep. He needed assurances.

The Professor could see this. "Nothing will be decided today. I assure you, no harm will come to Angel. Let Fallen tend to you and we'll sort this all out later."

"How do I knows yous ain't gonna steals her away from us?" Zander demanded to know, softening his tone just a little bit. He wanted so much to believe.

"Because that is not how we work here. You should know this by now. No harm has come to you in spite of your illness. No one will harm this child. Rest and we will care for her."

Zander nodded and softly growled as he let go. Kimble gasped as he rose to the fore and toppled over, his strength gone. The shield had vanished with Zander and Kimble could do nothing to stop the others as they rushed over to him and lifted him up, carrying him down to the Med Bay. He was to exhausted to speak but kept his eyes on Fallen who carried Angel close by where he could see her. He felt himself placed carefully on a bed and was asleep before they were even done covering him up.

-------------------

Once Kimble was asleep, the Professor and Beast both had a good look at the child Kimble had brought home. Other than being tiny and only slightly malnourished, the baby was in good health. Of course, Charles was interested in more than just her physical well being. When Henry was finished examining the child, Charles took a moment to carefully probe her mind with his own.

In general, Charles only entered the mind of another when invited, but he had mind-scanned infants before. He learned a lot quickly – in spite of her normal appearance he had no doubt a DNA test would prove this child to be superhuman, she didn't scan as a normal child would. Her psi shields were the strongest he'd ever felt, even more so than Jean's when they had first met. This child would be a powerful telepath, Charles was certain of it.

As if in unspoken agreement, Angel looked up at him with her shiny blue eyes and a message was sent, _He's mine._

_And who might that be?_ Charles responded in kind.

The baby gurgled a laugh. _Why Kimble of course! _

The Professor's eyes opened wide. Like any infant he had scanned, her thoughts had at first seemed simplistic and elemental, she was much too young for anything more than that. Usually he'd pick up the basics from infants -- want food, want mother, want warmth and comfort. He had just been proven wrong, Angel had mentioned Kimble by name.

_And what do you know of Kimble, young one?_

_He's mine. You cannot keep him from me._

Charles would have laughed if he hadn't sensed some power behind the implied threat. It wasn't violence she was offering at the moment, only a kind of sturdy stubbornness he'd known too well in others to be ignored. Angel was going to have her way, no matter what anyone thought about it.

_Don't worry,_ he sent to her. _We'll take care of you._

She said nothing more, but simply smiled at him knowingly and cooed, kicking her feet playfully as if dismissing him with all the confidence of a queen. Charles couldn't help but laugh softly at it, knowing just who was in charge of this situation – and it wasn't him! He reached for the phone, gathering the others.

-------------------------------

The Professor waited until everyone was seated. He looked over the group he had summoned, the remaining members of the Blue squad who were not off with Remy in Yosemite. This was going to be interesting, he wasn't sure how they were going to take what he had to say. He cleared his throat and everyone quieted. Fallen was here as was Storm, Warren, Henry and Bobby. Logan and Karen were here as well. He'd gathered them for their opinions in an impromptu sampling of how the team was going to take his decision regarding Kimble and the baby.

"I've gathered all of you here because this matter of Kimble and Angel must be thought over. I realize that Scott and Jean aren't here and neither is Remy, but I wanted to get a feel for what everyone is thinking. I've kept Kimble out of this because I want you all to be able to speak freely. I also want to spare him any hard feelings you may have against him. He's still a bit out of sorts from his bad experience with the outside and fragile.

"I'm going to start by telling you what happened today. Kimble broke his curfew by leaving the grounds. While he was gone, he came upon a burning building and attempted to rescue a woman who was inside. He was unable to do so, but was able to rescue her baby. All of this has been confirmed by Wolverine whom I dispatched to the scene after Kimble arrived back here and told his story. For the moment, it doesn't look like anyone is seeking custody of the child though it is still early.

"In the meantime, I have scanned this child's mind and found a surprising thing. Angel is no ordinary child. She has all the signs of becoming a major psi talent. As I scanned her she sent me a message, making it perfectly clear that she has chosen Kimble and will not be separated from him."

"This is a joke, right?" Bobby said, speaking what he hoped was on everyone's mind. "How do we know he won't sexually molest her?"

Fallen sucked in a deep breath, her hands clenched with righteous anger. "How dare you!" she hissed at him in a sharp whisper, not the least bit pleased this had come up. As much as she might be uncertain about Kimble's mental state, she never would have thought Kimble would do such a thing, not to a child.

"Given his history, I think it's a legitimate concern," he countered, trying to be firm. Fallen hadn't been there when Kimble had made a pass at him. Kimble's various perversions were something he and Scott had discussed privately, Bobby was speaking more for Scott now than himself.

The Professor cleared his throat. "While Kimble may be at times...rambunctious...I think it's clear he's gone through some changes. He's not who he once was."

"He gets off on being hit," Bobby protested, unable to hide his disgust. "He once considered Sabretooth to be his Master. What if Saby comes around again and Kimble takes off with him, bringing her along with him?"

The Professor steepled his fingers under his chin and was thoughtful before he spoke. "Your concerns are legitimate, but unfounded in this case, I think. I suspect she could be in no safer hands and I also feel she may be more in charge of this situation than we think."

" 'Scuze me, Chuck," Logan snorted. "Gonna hafta run that one by me again."

"I told you she is no ordinary child. She seems to have a bond with Kimble and separating them could be harmful to them both."

Again Logan snorted, it wasn't a pleasant sound. "I been hearin' that 'bonded' word just a little too often 'round here when it comes to Kimble. First Remy an' now this baby? This means Kimble's gonna get his way all the time?"

Charles scowled, not liking Wolverine's tone. Unfortunately, no one else in the room was coming to Kimble's defense. Not a good sign. "Don't be thinking that this means Kimble is getting his way. This is about Angel, not him, and like it or not, she has a say in this and she has spoken."

"Like some kid knows anything. I think it's the stupidest thing I ever heard. In spite of his 'kind and gentle' appearance (insert arrogant snort here), Kimble is capable of causin' a lot of damage. He burned me, almost split Saby in two. Less than that, from what I've seen, he's nuthin' more than a little kid in a man's body. He can't even keep himself outta trouble, how's he gonna take care of some kid? Raisin' kids ain't like takin' care of a puppy, you know. It's all about takin' a kid and makin' a person. Anything he does will affect her. Kim ain't anywhere near stable. I didn't trust him much before and I trust him even less now. He don't talk about what happened to him. He don't talk to nobody. How do any of us know what's goin' on in his head?"

Karen was a bit shocked by Logan's words and couldn't hide the look on her face. It wasn't like him to speak so candidly and effectively about childrearing, something he admittedly had little experience in. In spite of that, he'd hit her feelings on the matter right on the head.

"It's true Kimble doesn't talk about what happened, but he's never been one to do that," Fallen replied. "He's a much better listener than a talker. Remy got very close to him. I'm hoping that when Gambit returns in a couple of days, he'll get Kimble to talk privately about what went on."

The Professor nodded again. "I believe this also. We do need to discover just how badly Leon and Creed have damaged him and I think Remy is the best person to help him."

"That Cajun keeps his own secrets," Logan complained. "He ain't gonna say nuthin' Kimble tells him and you know it."

"We don't need to know the specifics, Logan, although it would be nice. We need only know how badly Kimble was affected and what we can expect from him," Fallen said, trying to calm things down.

"That is true," Karen said in agreement. "But I will add this. If you take this child from Kimble now, Professor, he will perceive it as the ultimate rejection and lack of trust from us. I can tell you now, his psyche will never recover. It will break him even more than he is already ---- and, by the way, to any of you may have doubts, Kimble's fracture is very real. Very real. He already feels he's on the outside of everything you and the X-men are. He now perceives this child as his salvation. Remove her and we'll lose any chance of saving him emotionally."

"If he's such a wreck how can he take care of a child on his own?" Warren protested. He was surprised that there were folks in this room actually considering allowing this.

"Because he won't be doing it alone," Charles answered to that. "He will be strictly supervised. Beast will be helping him out at first, and if any of you know Remy well enough, will know he'll be all over Angel the moment he sees her."

Logan grumbled rough laughter in disgust. "Yeah, 'cause he's got 'father material' written all over him. Those two fuck ups couldn't keep a dog 'tween the both of them."

"Now that's a bit harsh," Beast interjected, speaking up for the first time. "You underestimate them both. Kimble looked after Fallen numerous times when she had her troubles with Valentin, you saw how he was on the Dragon with her when she was sick. Remy isn't any less conscientious. And they won't be alone, Molly and I will chip in, we are both looking after Kimble now as it is. Adding Angel into the mix isn't that much more to handle with so many of us. I say we give Kimble his shot. If he cannot handle it, fine, we take her away. But I think all of you will be in for a most pleasant surprise."

"That might be true if it was the Lover in charge," Logan again protested. His voice snarled on the word Lover as if it was something distasteful. "He's got a whole friggin' crowd in there."

"Not for long, Remy is seeing to that now as we speak."

"An' if that fails?"

"Then we re-examine Angel's circumstances and decide if she should be removed. Nothing that is said today is carved in stone."

"You are certain this bond exists?" Storm asked the Professor, redirecting the conversation. The fact was, she respected Henry as most of them did, it was his opinion that was beginning to sway her into Kimble's favor.

"Yes. It's real," Charles was quick to answer. "I suspect that Kimble is under new management again, only this time from someone who will never hurt him or exploit him as the others have done. She is his true Mistress and I think we'll see some big changes in him from now on."

"So you've already decided this and none of us really had a say in it?" Bobby tossed out. He was clearly displeased, his hands had frosted just slightly in his anger, leaving thin rings of ice on the table where they lay.

"Let's say I was fishing to see how much resistance there would be," the Professor replied, keeping his words gentle. "I found about what I expected. I am hoping those of you who object will be the extra eyes and ears for Angel, you can look after her in your own ways. Kimble will have her and we will all look after them both.

"You see, I believe it was no accident that Kimble was sought after by the Freedom Kings and Jael. I believe this now with all my heart. Remy mentioned that there had been a three million dollar offer to Sabretooth for him. We have all since learned there is even a bounty for bringing Kimble in alive. We have every reason to believe the bounty still exists in spite of Jael's current losses and I'll just bet it will be raised now that this child has been discovered. Others will want her for themselves so they can bend her to their will and exploit her power. It is imperative that both she and Kimble be protected."

"So Kimble's vision wasn't just a fluke," Fallen said in his defense. "If others also knew he would find her."

"Yes," the Professor agreed. "It was his destiny to find her, I'm certain of it. The two of them share some kind of connection, a powerful bond I do not believe should be tampered with without a very good reason. This is why, Bobby, I am not afraid of Kimble harming her in any way."

Logan snorted, still not the least bit happy with this decision. "They've known each other for less than a day. How can they have a bond?"

"It's there. I've felt it. Not from Kimble, from Angel," Karen interrupted. "She knows him and calls out to him. She chose him. It's the only reason why I go along with the Professor on this. Kimble should be her father. I would add that we are still obligated to discover Angel's real family."

"Seth and I did as much research as we could in the short time we've been given," Henry replied. "We weren't able to locate any records of her birth or of her mother. It's possible she was born on the streets and technically belongs to no one. Either she stays with us or she'll be placed in foster care."

"That will not happen," the Professor said in his commanding voice. "She is much too vulnerable. I will not allow her to be exploited. As far as I'm concerned, right now, she belongs to all of us."

------------------

It was early evening when Kimble slowly came awake. He could hear Angel crying and knew it was him she wanted. He groaned and sat up, he was still really tired from today's ordeal and not feeling too speedy. Fallen had recharged him a little with some Ristle when he'd first been taken to the Lab, but he was weak. He needed to go back out into the sun, but that wouldn't happen until morning. He rose unsteadily and shuffled off towards the sound of Angel's voice. "I'm cummin'," he whispered gently.

He found her in the next bed over, the privacy curtains pulled around. She was in a plastic baby cradle placed on the bed she had been washed and clothed in a real diaper. There was a pink fuzzy blanket in there with her, but she'd kicked it off. She was fussing a little, but not crying just yet.

Seth was sitting next to her bed, out cold asleep in a chair he'd stolen from Henry's office. He'd taken his glasses off and looked too comfortable to wake so Kimble let him be, it was Angel he'd come here for after all. She was still softly fussing, but not out loud, Kimble realized with some surprise that he was hearing her inside his mind.

He came closer, moving into her limited line of sight. She immediately broke into a smile and made a cooing sound. His heart almost burst with joy when he felt her love vibration reach out towards him to touch his soul. Oh, how he'd needed this. It was a rush of delicious energy, this vibration of need for him. She wanted him, needed him, desired him to be around her always. He belonged to her now.

Kimble reached out and carefully picked her up, unsure of her miniature, fragile body. He'd never had a baby to hold like this and she filled him with awe and wonder. He held her to his chest and put his big, strong arms around her protectively. He could smell her and feel the heat from her tiny body against him. He could hear her heart beating and see her bright, tiny shine. It was so brilliant and soothing to his heart. He tenderly rubbed the soft fuzzy down on her head, loving how wonderful and soft it was. He kissed her head and held her, completely and utterly in love.

Seth stirred in his chair, sensing his brother was nearby. He woke and saw Kimble there with the baby. "Good morrow."

Kimble smiled at him, his heart filled with happiness. He glanced at the clock, seeing it was only about eight o'clock or so. "Good morrow, brother. It's kinda early fer yous ta be sleepin'. Fallen keepin' ya up nights?"

"Very funny," Seth replied, fishing for his glasses. He still found most lights too bright and probably always would. He found them and looked up at his brother, happy just to have him back here where he could be seen and felt for real.

Watching Kimble hold the tiny infant, Seth was reminded of all the times Kimble had been there for him in the beginning when Fallen had first created him. Almost from the start Seth had been self aware. He had been frightened and intimidated by the new world he'd found himself in but Kimble had been there, helping him with his kindness and patience, just as he was holding this child now. Seth smiled at them and looked around. "Are they done yet?"

"Is who done with what?"

"They're having a meeting about you and Angel."

"What about us? We're stickin' together, her an' me." He held her a little more tightly, nervous at the though of being discussed. It hadn't come out so well for him in the past.

"Don't worry, Kimble. I'm sure Fallen will stick up for you. The Professor favors you as well. He said Angel has power. He won't let anything happen to her."

As if on cue, the Professor and some of the others came into the room, the meeting had just broken up and they were coming to see if Kimble had finally come around. Charles smiled up at Kimble. "Ah. good. You're awake. How do you feel?"

"I'm all right," Kimble answered slowly. He stepped away with Angel, holding her against him defensively. "What didja all decide?"

"Relax, Kimble. No one's going to take Angel away from you. Angel's voice was perhaps the loudest of all. As long as none of her family come forward to claim her, you will be her father."

Kimble relaxed and turned away, his arms still around the infant. He didn't want them to see the tears of relief that came to him. "Thank you," he said quietly and stroked Angel's head. She cooed and grabbed at his hand, he gave it to her with a smile and she happily gummed one of his knuckles.

"There will be some rules however," the Professor added.

Kimble looked back, his brow creased with worry. "What kinda rules?"

"We feel it would be a good idea if you don't take Angel off the grounds for a while. She may be in danger. It's best if you stay close by."

"**_We'll stay in the small spaces, just like we's promised the Master,"_** Lin said, popping out for a moment, prompting Seth to translate. **_"It's safer there." _**

"I ain't goin' nowheres," Kimble said defensively, shoving Lin down and showing his fear so the Professor would understand he had no desire to leave. "Not fer a long time."

"I suppose you've shown that tracking bracelets are a waste of time, so I am requiring that you don't leave your holding cell without an escort. We have no way of knowing if the bounty on you is still active. I can't stress enough the danger that's out there."

"I knows it well enough," Kimble replied sincerely. "Kin I at least gos outside with her? Just up on the peak fer the sun?"

"Yes, of course. We all know you need to be outside to charge. Remember, you are still under our custody as per our agreement with SHIELD, those rules have not changed. You stay in the lockup at night as you have been. I'll see to it that Angel has a crib in there for you to use."

"All right. Thank you, sir."

"Now, I've already sent Karen and Ororo out to get you the supplies you will need. There is a good amount of literature in the library on child rearing. I suggest you begin reading it at once."

"Thanks. I'll pay ya back fer evrathin' when I can," Kimble said, his offer sincere. In the confusion of his coming out and then all this, he'd never been told about his inheritance from Victor Creed. A few diapers and some baby clothes wouldn't be much of a problem for him ever again.

Just the same, Charles had this response, "I'll take it in trade. Henry said he could really use your help in installing the cloaking devices on the Blackbirds, plus he has other work for you in the lab."

"Sounds good ta me," Kimble agreed with a smile. He now had a full plate, but for a Siskan who thrived on being useful, it was a good thing.

"Looks like you'll be busy fer a while," Logan commented in a grumble, still unhappy with the situation and not afraid to show it. "Good. It'll keep ya outta trouble."

The Professor didn't acknowledge Logan's statement, he didn't want Kimble to feel pressured on his first day. "Your taking care of her will be strictly supervised. There will be plenty of people around. You're going to need help so don't hesitate to ask for anything."

Kimble held his tiny Angel to his chest. "Thanks."


	5. Chapter 5

(Five)

Three days later and a whirlwind trip across the country later, Remy came out onto the Mansion's widow's peak, carrying a cup of coffee. He'd just arrived from Yosemite less than an hour ago and was eager to see his friend, he had quite the surprise in store for his Siskan. The guard was there and Remy dismissed him, wanting to be alone when he talked with Kimble. Gambit squinted and blinked in the bright sun, he usually came out here at night, not in the afternoon like this. He saw Kimble there and took a moment to look him over before walking over to speak to him. Kimble had his back to the sun, his wings fanned out behind him soaking up the heat and energy. He was squatting comfortably in the middle of the widow's peak's patio with his head down. He had Angel strapped to his chest in a Gerry Pack, rubbing her fuzzy head gently with one hand, a look of utter bliss on his face. He looked like a bizarre winged marsupial with her against him, but there was no mistaking the love there he had for this child.

A cup of Earl Grey tea and half a croissant on a plate were beside him. Kimble had found that a combination of sun gathering, Fallen's Ristle and a couple of small meals throughout the day kept him from falling back into his earlier lethargy. His new favorite ritual was to sun himself for an hour or so each morning and late afternoon with a cup of tea. Henry had given him some Earl Grey to try and he'd been hooked ever since.

Kimble looked up when he heard Remy's approach and smiled warmly at his absent friend. "Good morrow, Remy."

"Good morrow," Gambit said with a laugh. It was such an odd greeting.

Kimble held out his hand and Remy took it. Their hands crackled red briefly as Kimble took a small sip of Ristle from him and Kimble chuckled at it. "I missed ya."

"Bien entendu. Everybody miss me," Remy teased. "You look better dan de last time I saw you."

"I am...better," Kimble said slowly.

"And who's dis petite?"

Kimble smiled. "S' my Angel."

"Yes, I 'eard you 'ad a new girl. She a little young for you, non?"

Kimble laughed at Remy's joke. He brushed the tawny down on Angel's head and gave her his hand. She grasped his finger and gummed a knuckle merrily, one of her favorite activities.

"And where did you find dis bon jolie fille?"

"Took her from a burnin' building. Guess I'm a reg'lar hero now," he finished bitterly. "Too bad I couldn't git 'er Momma out. I ain't gots no clue how I'm gonna take care 'a Angel like this."

"Babies ain't no big deal, cher. Wit all de women in dis 'ouse, you got plenty of 'elp. Besides, girls dig a guy wit a baby. Works every time."

"An' you know this by experience?" Kimble asked with a grin, quirking an eyebrow.

"Heh, heh. Not yet, non. P'etetre, someday fo' Gambit, just like you."

They sat quietly enjoying the sun for a few moments. Fallen had snagged Remy for a quick update the moment he had arrived. He already knew that Kimble had found the baby two days ago and was given custody of her for now. Seth had called him, almost gushing in his excitement. Seth had taken this as a sign that his brother was on the mend and all would be well.

Kimble had taken his responsibility seriously, Fallen went on to explain. Maybe too seriously -- he obsessed over Angel, he took her everywhere he went and never let her out of his sight. He was a nervous Nelly whenever anyone else besides himself handled her. He read books on child rearing constantly and was frustrated by all the different opinions. Like every new father, he wanted an owner's manual that didn't exist and still seemed reluctant to ask for help. He was too nervous around the others here, fearful of rejection and scorn. He still behaved as though he didn't belong in this house and Fallen was hoping Remy could get Kimble to open up and come back to his old self.

Remy picked up the conversation as though the silent moments never happened. "She a quiet one, non? Most babies I know be screamin' all de time."

"She don' hafta cry. She tells me what she wants. I cain't say as I always know whats ta do 'bout it, but I kin tell what she wants."

"She talks to you?"

"In my head. She looks at me an I jus' know."

Remy scoffed. "You know what she's t'inkin'? You gotta let me in on dat secret. Gambit never knows what girls' re t'inkin'."

Kimble laughed. " 'S funny, huh? Angel an' me. We belong together somehow. She sees inside 'a me. We jus' seem ta know what each other is thinkin 'bout, is all."

"Yeah? What she t'inkin' 'bout you right now?"

"She's wonderin' how I kin be so happy ta have her, an' be all scared inside at the same time."

Remy realized that in ten minutes' time, Kimble had spoken more privately to him than to any one since he had left nearly three weeks ago. "What you afraid of, little brother?"

Kimble paused. "You know what 'Shay done ta the cats, right?"

"Yeah?" Remy asked nervously, not sure he wanted to hear this. He had an idea from the one phone call just what his friend was about to say. What had he said? _No phone, no cats, no babies... _That and the other comment Lin had made. _'Shay killded the small ones..._ Gambit braced himself for bad news.

Kimble took a breath and spoke. "Well...he didn' bring her just cats, y' know? Jus' once...jus' once... he..." He lowered his eyes and grasped Angel tightly, shivering.

"We done bad things," Lin whispered, not taking control, but speaking his piece just the same.

" 'E brung you a child?"

"Yeah," Kimble confessed in Lin's place, shivering as he struggled for control. He could hear Lakotashay weeping, but he was firmly at the helm now. She wouldn't be let loose. "It was sick, messed up somehow. Its shine wuz real bad. It wuz gonna die nohow, but y' knows that ain't the point. It don' justify what he wanted us ta do. I don' know where he got it from...hospital maybe...some homeless person...I ain't never told no one...they's gonner takes Angel from me if I do..."

"Paisible, cher. Jus' take it easy now. Jus' relax," Remy said, reaching out as the inevitable tears began to spill down Kimble's cheeks. "Dis jus' between you an' me. You confess it to me, it's good enough. You make a mistake, don' mean you'll do it again."

Kimble wasn't comforted by that, not enough. "Nuthin' kin take back what 'Shay...what-what I done. What scares me th' most wuz how easy it wuz fer him ta git us ta do what he wanted. I'm worried that someone's gonna makes me hurt my Angel an' I won' be able ta stops us."

"Love is a powerful t'ing. It changes you, most times for de better. I'm t'inkin' Angel gonna be very good for you, little brother. You love dis child, non? Gambit can see dis. When it comes down to it, you won't fail 'er. Gambit's t'inkin' mebbe you got a new Mistress an' my Kimble's finally gonna be okay now."

"But I'm always fuckin' up!" Kimble complained as more tears raced down to his chin.

Remy wiped them away as he spoke softly. "Dat's 'cause you keep tryin' ta do it all alone. Let us 'elp you, s'il vous plait."

"I'm talkin' ta ya, ain't I?"

"Oui, but I been gone awhile. I ain't always around. You got to learn to trust de others, too."

"No one's as nice ta me as you."

"Non. I'm de only one you tried to make friends wit. De Professor likes you and so does 'Enry." Kimble nodded, but said nothing more. "De X-men de best t'ing to 'appen to a scoundrel like me. Dey give me a second chance, dey gonna give it to you, too. A person needs a family, so do you. Dey can 'elp you. Dey can give you whatever you need --- trainin', 'elp wit Angel, whatever. It's all right 'ere. You on a team now. We all gonna 'elp you, even dat asshole Logan. You'll see. We gonna take care of you, you gonna take care of us. Dat's 'ow you win. You go alone? You lose every time."

Kimble snickered softly. "Yer pretty smart fer just a kid."

"Oui, dis is true," Gambit admitted with a teasing smile. "Now, speakin' of second chances, Gambit's got a surprise fo' you."

"What's that? More chocolate?"

"Non. Better dan dat."

"You gonna lay with me?" Kimble joked, his voice teasing, but his eyes sad. He knew that wasn't going to happen.

Remy paused, a bit startled by that. He hadn't expected the question and didn't have the standard cocky reply prepared. "Non. Gambit's got sumptin' even better dan dat."

Kimble lowered his eyes, still trying to play the game, but not quite making it. "Ain't no such thing."

"As a matter of fact, dere is. Gambit's found someone who's gonna stop de voices."

"I wuz playin' around. Yer joke ain't no better than mine."

"Dis ain't no joke. We gonna go down dose stairs, put yo' Angel somewhere safe, and put yo' 'ead back together. Let's go, buddy." To emphasize his point, he stood up and held out his hand.

"Yer lyin'," 'Shay said, popping out. "Yer fuckin' with us like ya fuck with evrabody else."

"Gambit don' fuck wit nobody. Not like dis. C'mon."

"**_You came back, gonna makes it so we don't hurting nobodys no more?"_** Lin asked in his tiny Siskan. **_"You kept your promise." _**

"**_Dat's right. Gambit come back with de ransom. Don't look like 'e needed it, Kimble come back on 'is own._** C'est bien. **_Let's finish dis." _**

"This had better not be bullshit," Zander growled.

Remy grinned his best charming smile. "Gambit ever let you down? Trust me."

"Yer a thief."

"Oui. 'An I stole you a doctor. Let's go."

"Karen didn't do shit fer us."

Remy clicked his tongue in playful exasperation. "Zandy, Gambit's an exceptional t'ief. 'E steal you an exceptional doctor."

Zander was very protective of the body, he didn't steal the seat from Kimble without a good reason. His look was one of stubbornness. He did not believe.

Remy crouched down and palmed Zander's cheek, sending him a strong vibration of love. "Gambit ain't gonna let no body 'urt you. Trust me."

Zander let go and Kimble nodded. "All right."

He grabbed his dishes and followed Remy down the stairs.

----------------------

The hunt for the Games Master had almost been a disaster. Yosemite National Park was located in Sierra Nevada, California. The idea of California brought images of fun in the sun for Gambit — he couldn't have been any more mistaken. In March, most of the park is covered in deep snow and is really more of a cross country and ski resort. It's mainly wilderness and trees and not even close to being a beach with suntanned young campers.

The team that Storm had flown out consisted of Scott, his wife Jean, Rogue and Gambit. Storm had flown them out, but she was transportation only. There was no way any of the Blackbirds could be risked being kept out in the park for an extended period of time, cloaked or not. Storm or one of the others would come back and pick them up when they were ready to leave. Once in the park, they had top of the line camping gear, a map, and some cloaking devices to help keep them out of sight. Jean would use her power to move them about the park and cover their camp sites as they searched for the Games Master. Their task wouldn't be easy, they had no real clue what they were looking for or when the guy was going to show up. They could search an area and move on, only to have the Games Master possibly show up there the next day. They decided to stay in the more remote areas, figuring that since their quarry came from another world, he would do the same.

Gambit's hope that this nightmare would end quickly was soon dashed. They had come to the end of their second week now with no sign of the Games Master. Trishnar had said March, but not the date. No one knew just how long they would be stuck out here.

---------------------------

They were starting their third week out here and it was late at night when Remy moaned in his sleeping bag, thrashing now and mumbling aloud. "Non...get back! I'm warnin' you... Stop! Christ, what're you doin'? Non...dis wasn't supposed to 'appen...Stop! Non...Oh, God! Non...non... Gambit's so sorry... so sorry!"

Cyclops was awake, quite pissed off, and unable to sleep with the racket the thief was making. Remy wasn't screaming, not like their first night here, but the tent was small and they were right next to each other, as good as sharing the same bed. Jean and Rogue were still here in the camp with them, but no one was about to let Rogue and Remy share a tent. They were certain to fight and no one would be sure to sleep then. The tents were divided by gender and now Scott was stuck listening to Remy's pain.

It was true that Scott didn't know Remy that well, but clearly the thief was dreaming of the tunnels. Scott had seen the damage in the Morlock tunnels personally, it was enough to horrify anyone, even the one who was ultimately responsible for it. He could also hear the sadness now in his teammate's tortured dreams, yet had little sympathy. It was too late to bring all those people back. _Serves you right_, _you thieving bastard,_ he couldn't help but think. _Serves you right._

A moment later, Gambit bolted upright, his hands out as if warding off a blow. He blurted out nonsense French curses and gripped his chest, doing his best to calm himself. His lungs had squeezed tightly in his panic and now that he was awake, refused to allow him air. He was suffocating, choking.

No, he was having an anxiety attack, and not for the first time.

He used to dream like this often when he had first returned from his frosty exile. The panic was from the horror of the crime he had committed, the constriction in his lungs was a leftover from nearly freezing to death half a world away. He'd been rescued from Antarctica by Russian sledders, but not before he'd suffered from frostbite and exposure. He'd been taken to a hospital where he'd struggled through a lovely bout of pneumonia, something that had left his body scarred deep inside. When thoughts of his crime closed in, so did the panic and the wheezing.

Gambit sat like that a minute, simply shivering and gasping for air, before wiping his frightened tears away. He reached for his cigarettes and shuffled out, saying nothing although he had noticed Cyclops was now awake. This had become routine, really. He'd dreamt every night and was exhausted. He wasn't the only one. He knew Scott was having trouble with him, but the stoic leader said nothing, ever the stony martyr.

Remy made his way to the nearest tree and hunched under it. He'd grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around himself, cursing the weather. That was the real problem here. It had snowed the first fucking day they'd arrived out here and almost every day since. He was freezing his ass off in spite of the protective gear they'd brought. Every eventuality had been planned for but this was a nightmare for him. It was no secret to anyone why he was having the dreams -- out here, the only thing keeping this from being Antarctica for him was the trees. They were out in the forest not far from Badger Pass, doing their best to avoid the park rangers. They were here in secret without permits to camp as they searched for the Games Master. Why the sick bastard would want to come out here in this mess was beyond him. This had been misery from day one.

Gambit fumbled with his cigarettes, lighting one clumsily in his haste. Yeah, smoking at this moment wasn't the best of plans, but he was thirsty for heat, even from this. He managed to gather enough of a breath to take a drag, enough that he felt some warmth come in. He calmed from it, the tightness in his chest easing a bit. That was better, yes.

He gave a startled snort and looked up as he heard the other tent open and saw Rogue come out. It was the middle of the night, well past midnight and he'd woken everybody, how embarrassing. He couldn't look at her as she tugged a blanket around herself and shuffled over. "You okay, Sugah?"

"Oui, chere," he replied softly, his voice soft and strained. He was breathing a little better now, but he wasn't near ready to run a marathon or anything. "Je suis bien."

"Me an' Jean had a talk. You should bunk with me for a while. Poor ol' Cyke ain't had a lick of sleep since we got here."

Remy closed his eyes and smiled. "Oh? An' dey gonna sleep any better wit de two of us fightin' like dogs?"

"Ah promise to be good if you will."

He looked up at her, a little surprised by the kindness in her tone. This trip had been difficult, his companions not the ones he would have chosen for himself. Scott was a domineering asshole and they argued constantly about which way to search. Rogue was his ex-girlfriend, one he'd threatened to kill only just a couple a weeks before. The strain there was obvious. Jean was the saving grace in all of this. She was very good at mediating and keeping them all from turning on each other. This motley group had been chosen for Remy's protection, his three teammates were some of the toughest on the team. Jean was smart enough to know that some of the strain was coming from Remy – as much as Babette had taught him to control his empathy, he was only a beginner when it came to his mental shields. His empathy was leaking out and his foul mood and frustration with this disastrous trip was getting past his shields and effecting the group. Jean had spoken to the others and her patient interventions had kept this from falling apart.

Rogue had listened to Jean and she had been good, that was true. She and Remy hadn't argued once since they'd arrived but he'd just figured it was Jean keeping the peace. Jean had gone out of her way to keep them separated and apart long enough for no issues to come up. They had all been civil with one another --- well, all but Remy and Scott. They argued bitterly and Jean was often forced to settle their petty wars. She knew most of Gambit's tension came from lack of sleep. The thief had known he would be forced to camp --- something he disliked intensely to begin with --- but he hadn't counted on the snow.

The first nightmare had been the worst. He'd woken up screaming and the others rushed out, thinking they were under attack. Remy had slunk off afterwards, horribly embarrassed and beside himself with misery. He'd seen Sabretooth's eyes and felt those horrible claws ripping through his chest, he had screamed Victor's name and almost exploded the tent in his befuddled defense. Scott had been forced to hit him to bring him awake and Remy decked him in return, not knowing where he was or what was going on. He left a huge bruise there and couldn't look Cyclops in the face after that. It was a lucky thing he hadn't knocked Scott's sleep goggles off and blasted his own head off. Scott had learned his lesson quickly and didn't try waking Remy again. If Remy got too rowdy, he grumbled and snuck into the girl's tent, ignoring Rogue's complaints.

Back outside the tents, Rogue tried to ease the pain of her ex-boyfriend. "C'mon, Sugah. Let's go get some rest," she suggested, tugging on him. She'd seen Jean take advantage of Remy's departure to sneak into the boy's tent to be with her husband. That left the girl's tent empty.

"Look, chere. You an' me --"

Rogue shushed him. "Why you always gotta think with your dick? C'mon. Ah'm tired an' it's freezin' out here."

He grumbled, but followed her back to the tent. He snuggled down in Jean's now empty sleeping bag. It was still warm and toasty and felt wonderful after the frigid air outside. Rogue scooched close to him, keeping her own bag as a safety net in between them, and put her arms around him as best she could. He resisted her at first, but then relaxed, too tired and low to fight her off.

"See? Now this is better," she soothed. Inwardly she was elated. She still believed she could win him back, but knew she would have to take it nice and slow. He was resisting her, wounded deeply with his thoughts all twisted by that sick, Siskan bastard. This time, she would have to put some effort into drawing him back in. She could do that.

"Merci, chere. Merci..." Remy mumbled and drifted off back to sleep. He dreamed once more, but this time with the warm arms around him, he saw not Victor Creed, but the soft blue eyes of his daughter.

----------------

Remy had accomplished his goal early the next morning. As the sun had slowly risen, there was a trace of something in the clouds above the bright red ball, something that called to him. A shimmer in the gloom, a sign. He ignored all of Scott's bitter protests and ordered them all to pack up. The strain was getting to them all and Cyclops had a fit, not liking Remy's tone. Gambit told him he could stay behind at camp if he wanted, he just didn't give a shit anymore. He'd gotten his sign and Scott could go stuff himself for all he cared. Jean had to step in once more and now they were here, waiting for the thief to shit or get off the pot.

Gambit was standing just inside the tree line, deciding his fate, a pair of binoculars in his poor freezing fingers. All he could see was a young teenager sitting on a log outside of a tiny cabin, tip tapping away on a laptop computer, a radio headset around his ears. He didn't look frightening, this computer nerd with his glasses and red longish hair falling about his face. Not frightening at all unless you considered that he was dressed for summer and was sitting where there had been no cabin just two days before. He was locked in deep concentration, not even aware he was being spied upon.

Gambit sighed and shifted his feet nervously. He looked back at his companions and spoke softly. "Dis look like de guy, but b'fore we go too far, Gambit wants to get some t'ings straight, y'all."

Rogue crossed her arms and squinted a little, already defensive against his arrogance. He was in charge of this operation yes, but something about his tone disturbed her. He was speaking like he knew exactly what he was doing when they all knew he was really just winging this. Scott, used to being the leader, didn't look any happier.

Remy didn't wait for them to start arguing, he went on to say, "Dis Gambit's show. You let 'im do all de talkin', comprenez? Dis fo' Kimble an' I ain't about to let any of you screw it up."

"Let's just get on with it, Swamp Rat," Rogue snapped, irritated with his tone.

"You come wit me, y'all gotta show some patience," Remy said, taking some of the sharpness out of his voice. He had wanted them to listen to him, but he could see that the arrogance wasn't working. He needed them to go along with whatever might happen out there, he had every reason to suspect there might be a few snags in the cross cultural department. "Dese guys ain't like us, dey got a different way of doin' t'ings. Gambit spent a week at Trishnar's, got a feel fo' dis. If 'e got some Siskans wit 'im, don't be put off if dey a bit more friendly dan you used to. Jus' don' be mean about it, d'accorde?" he said, looking at Scott in particular.

"We promise to behave," Scott said, his own irritation plain. He just wanted this done and was hoping this was really the guy Remy had come to see. It sure didn't look like it from here.

Jean took Scott's arm and smiled at him, hoping to clam him down. "Relax, dear. I'm sure you've faced more dangerous guys than this one."

Remy just laughed, thinking of Trishnar's girls. "Don' be so sure, mes amis."

They walked out into the clearing and up to the boy working on his computer. The kid was casually dressed in a cut off sweatshirt and khaki shorts. He wore unlaced hiking boots with no socks, looking for all the world like a surfer who'd gotten lost in the snow. He looked up, surprised to see them, but made no move to run away. "Can I help you?"

"Yeah, we lookin' fo' yo' daddy. De guy around?" Remy asked, trying to look as unintimidating as possible.

"I'm here by myself."

Remy cocked his head in surprise. The kid didn't look a day over fourteen, small and bookish. Even a human of this age would never be out here in the woods all alone like this. Gambit grinned and asked, "You de Games Master?"

"Who's asking?"

Remy reached under his sweater and pulled out the necklace Trishnar had given him. "Friend of Trishnar. Said de Games Master would be 'ere."

The boy regarded him suspiciously, not really looking at the amulet. **_"What's your name?"_** he asked in Siskan.

"**_I am Remy LeBeau and dese are my friends, Rogue and Jean and Scott Summers." _**

The boy wasn't the least bit interested in Gambit's companions, he was looking only at him. **_"Where did you meet Trishnar?" _**

"_**Spent a week up at 'is house. Down in N'awlins." **_

"_**You see his Siskans?" **_

Remy grinned. **_"Of course." _**

"_**The blue?" **_

"_**Aiden." **_

The boy turned away from him and tapped furiously on his computer. Remy heard a buzzing ring, he had activated some kind of remote phone. Remy smiled when he heard Babette's voice pick up on the other end. He was being checked up on. There was a swift conversation in a language Gambit didn't understand, but he presumed it was Dognan. The boy looked up at him and handed him the headset.

Remy slid off his pack, getting comfortable, and took it, unable to disguise his happiness to be speaking to Babette again. He felt as close to her as if she was his sister. He laughed a little as he spoke, the thought of her warming him. "Bonjour, mon jolie."

"You made it, sees me."

"Oui. Guess de little fella's a bit jumpy."

"Like that they all are. Don't be offended, you."

"Not dis boy. It wort' it just to 'ear yo' voice, mon ador'ee. How's yo' Dreamer? He get dat package I sent?" Not a week after his return to New York Remy had gone to the City and spent an outrageous amount of money on expensive paints and thick paper for his new friend. He sent it all down with a request for something nice and pretty for Kimble. Something colorful and happy.

Babette's beautiful laughter trickled from the phone. "Oh, yes. Quite pleased was he. Your request has been fulfilled. Something at home for you is waiting."

"Merci beaucoup, chere. Tell him I'll check it out as soon as I get back. Gambit's gotta go now, gotta get back to work."

"All right then. Goodbye."

"Je t'aime, chere. Au revoir."

He handed the headset back, a small smile on his lips. He had noted with some guilt the look of jealousy on Rogue's face. These words he had spoken, he used to say them to her. He hadn't wanted to hurt her but at the same time hadn't been able to hide what he felt for his new friends.

The boy took the headset and held out his hand. "I am Darken, the Games Master."

Remy shook it, bowing slightly. "No offense, mon fils, but we was expectin' someone a little bit older dan you."

"My dad. He got wiped out in the Clan insurrection on Cerise two months ago," Darken replied, no hint of pain from the loss in his voice. "I am the Games Master now."

Remy couldn't hide a look of surprise at the news. Looks like the folks back there had accomplished more than he had ever figured they would. "Okay... well, can you fix a shattered Siskan?" he asked, getting right to the point.

"Yeah, if it's not fried too badly. Did you bring it with you?" the boy asked, scanning the group with his eyes. It was the first time he had really looked at them.

"Non. 'E part of de Game. Too risky."

Darken nodded. "I've got three clients ahead of you, alpha," he said, acknowledging the mutant before him. "I should be able to handle them over the phone but you'll have to wait. You guys look a bit dusty, why don't you crash in my cabin? I've got a few Siskans in there, they'll take care of you while you're waiting."

Of course the Games Master would have some, it was his job to repair them. Gambit hadn't been expecting this, but now that it came down to it, he was glad. He hoped that exposing his teammates to them would help them appreciate Kimble's plight. That and his curiosity was peaked, he'd definitely grown obsessed with the species, the thought of having Siskans around him again raised his spirits. He couldn't wait to meet them, it was sure to be interesting. "We got dat much time?"

Darken looked back at him with a knowing grin. "Yeah. Three hours at least. Eat, wash up, play. They could use the company. I've never had much of a taste for them, they belonged to my father."

"Merci," Remy said with a bow and looked at the cabin. It was tiny but he had figured by now it was as false an image as the human boy in front of him. He nodded to the others. "Dis way."


	6. Chapter 6

(Six)

Scott looked at the cabin dubiously. "What is this?"

"It a house. C'mon, den. Don' be rude," Remy replied arrogantly, walking up to the tiny shack and going inside with a confidence that came from experience. Between his time spent on Cerise and at Trishnar's there was little left to surprise him. As he figured, it was nothing more than an entranceway to a cloaked Dognan ship. He went up the ramp and into a large craft, easily four or five times the size of the Lucky Dragon, but very similar in design. There was the row of seats and the cage room. Two pilot sticks were placed just inside, facing a large viewing screen. This cage was fully enclosed and two tiny pilots resided within, both curled up asleep on the bed, tangled around one another on the bed there like two lovers. They were sleek and well fed, not giving the appearance of being abused other than the fact they were not free to run around. He wondered if they were as self aware as Fallen was or like pets as Trishnar's were.

"Good morrow."

Remy turned to look at the speaker and saw a pretty young woman standing at the end of the isle to greet them. She was sleek and blonde, her blue eyes sparkling with interest, but it was her shine that drew him. Or lack of it, that was. She was a Siskan Courtesan, a normal one, and undamaged. Remy was pleased to meet what Kimble was supposed to be, there might be something yet to learn here for himself after all. He bowed at her, "Good morrow, mon chere."

"Darken said you were guests and we should see to you."

"Oui," Remy replied, looking past her to where three more Siskans had come from what would have been the galley room on the Dragon, two females and a male. All the Siskans were scantily clad as Trishnar's Siskans had been. The women were topless with only the tiniest of briefs, the man's brief not much larger. Not a shine among them, Remy could see. Like Lislay, these were standard issue Courtesans and not the Lushna-esk that he had come to know so well. It was almost disappointing, he'd grown so used to the thought of the Luhsna-esk, that these normal 'grams seemed out of place.

"I am Lislay," the girl replied and stepped forward to give Gambit a kiss. He was ready for it, the deep, suck face greeting of Trishnar's Siskans, and wasn't disappointed when that's just what he got. It seemed some things were common between the two breeds of Courtesans. He returned it without shame or self consciousness, but was startled by what he found – or rather, by what he didn't. Like a long time drunk taking a swig of a non-alcoholic beer, Lislay's Kundatesh free kiss was flat to him no matter how expertly it was given. He didn't show it, but he knew he could never love a Siskan such as this. Here was the machine that Logan saw Kimble to be, an empty shell. He stepped back, smiling at her, but he wouldn't touch her again.

Lislay, in her non Lushna-esk obliviousness, never noticed. She turned to the other Siskans who had joined them. "This is Greta, Migar and Hamish."

Gambit bowed at them, bracing himself as he was greeted by them in equal measure as Lislay, bringing an arched eyebrow from Rogue when Hamish, the male, was not turned away.

Cyclops was team leader on this mission and it took all the will of his training to keep from commenting on Gambit's bizarre behavior. Scott was amazingly uncomfortable with these half naked people about. It was as if they had walked into a brothel and he didn't like how Remy was acting, it was like the thief owned the place. Everyone at the house had pretty much known about Remy's promiscuous tendencies, but they had never been a problem before, not like this. Scott understood that yes, they were on a mission and that to a degree this was Gambit's show because of his familiarity with these people, but this? Whatever they were doing here, Scott hadn't expected to be taken to a what amounted to a whorehouse. He was completely out of his element and uncomfortable.

Remy was new to his talent, but familiar enough with the rippling waves of disgust and horror from his boss not to comprehend that an explanation was in order. He was quick to respond, not letting Scott's vibrations of censure rankle him in the least. "Dese folks are Siskan holograms, like Kimble. Well, maybe not so aware, but Courtesans all de same. Dis 'ow dey say 'allo. Wouldn't want to be impolite." he said, his voice jaunty and light with his usual sense of teasing, but his eyes were a little hard, a push back at his leader, willing the man to at least try and understand.

"And you know this **how** exactly?" Rogue inquired, her body stiff with jealousy. The details of Remy's adventure in New Orleans had not been given out to everybody. Most of his teammates were unaware of the extent of his leisure activities there.

Remy grinned at her but spoke to their host, "Lislay, dese are my friends, Rogue, Jean and Scott. Dey are human and not so familiar wit 'ow --- _friendly_ --- you Siskans can be. Take it easy on dem, eh?"

Lislay nodded. "I understand. You are not the first humans to visit our Master."

Remy stepped back and let the others introduce themselves. The Siskans were well behaved and didn't dive all over the new arrivals. They merely leaned in and kissed both cheeks in a standard Continental greeting, leaving their lips alone.

Rogue balked at the greetings until Remy reminded her that because the Siskans were non-organic, they could touch her without injury. This peaked her interest in them greatly and Remy couldn't hide the grin that warmed his face when he saw her smile. In spite of their recent troubles, he would never be so closed off to her that he couldn't share some enjoyment of her pleasure. He knew how significant touching was to her and wasn't insensitive because they were no longer going out anymore, it pleased him to see her joyful reaction.

Gambit was watching Rogue so intently that at first he didn't feel it, a slight mental intrusion that wasn't coming from anyone in this room, but once he realized what he was sensing, his eyes widened in surprise. He'd just been read by someone more than just casually interested in their guests.

**_/ Kundatesh!_ **Shi'ow-ri almost shouted in her joyful excitement, an urgency in her voice. **_/ Lushna-esk! He comes!_**

Remy's head was already turning in that direction before the new arrival ever made it to the door. Gambit tried to control his excitement, but his shivering was real, a trembling in his fingers that he hadn't the slightest ability to restrain. He was that far gone, it came to him. Just the thought of Kundatesh – anyone's — made him as eager for it as Pavlov's dog.

Gambit had had little time to contemplate how this strange addiction was going to impact the rest of his life. He'd gone from Kimble's return right back out on another mission, there had been no time. His body's reaction was just as shocking to him as a man who walked into a restaurant not realizing just how hungry he was until he smelled the main course. It was all he could do to keep from drooling when he felt that magic lick at the corners of his mind, teasing him, tasting him. And finding him good.

Gambit watched, fixed, as the inquirer finally arrived, a magnificent male Siskan, as beautiful as any Irish adonis. His skin was pale as fresh milk and his hair flame red, down to his waist in a long mane, thick and shiny with bright highlights. He was dressed in a shimmering silken dressing gown that sparkled and changed colors as he moved, something any true Siskan would simply love. Under that was a simple pair of tight black spandex pants --- leisure wear. His body was lean, tall and lithe, just like Remy's own. He settled in the doorway slowly, his eyes down and submissive, as though he expected to be ignored or uninvited to participate in the greetings.

When he saw Remy there and took in his shine and vibrations, his face broke out in a wide smile. It changed the whole look of his face, making him appear playful and merry. The newcomer's eyes were a deep emerald green and glittered with amused arousal as he used a finger to lift the long drape of his bangs on one side and tuck them behind his ear, a simple, graceful movement that caused his long auburn hair to shimmer in the overhead lights of the ship. Now that he had realized Gambit was as special as he was -- and that he had every ounce of the thief's attention -- he was consciously trying to seduce him, to make Gambit know he was found attractive.

And of course Remy knew it. Knew it and couldn't help but send out an answering vibration of mutual admiration. The quality of the Siskan's vibrations gave away that he was not only a Lushna-esk, but a Kintay du Lushna-esk. 'One of the Touched', and just as broken as Kimble and Aiden had been, though the clarity in his eyes showed he'd been worked on, repaired. Remy saw with satisfaction the blue flicker of his shine as he stood there, leaning in the doorway as shy little Aiden had often done. He was as silent as the Dreamer had been, the pain from his shattering all too clear. He was haunted, but must not be considered a threat if he was loose like this. Remy noted this Siskan carried no Mark and surmised that he wasn't part of the Game. If he had been, Darken would have no doubt kept him hidden. Babette had explained to him that the Lushna-esk has existed long before the Game, he couldn't assume anything about this newcomer. Whatever his status, it clearly hadn't kept him from being as abused and damaged as the others had been.

Gambit was overcome with curiosity, there was no way he was going to leave here without getting to know this one a little bit better.

He wasn't the only one with greetings on his mind. **_"My my my. Look what we gots here. You gots the Kundatesh some. Had yer Shemusk an' evrathin'. Well, what do ya knows about that?"_** the newcomer questioned with some surprise in soft Siskan, his mangled speech carrying over into the foreign tongue. His accent exactly mirrored that of Kimble's, sounding so strange in this place. It didn't stop his playful flirtation. **_"S' kinda odd fer a human... 'R maybe you ain't no human at all?" _**

"**_Sometimes, you never can tell,"_** Remy teased in return, playing the game. He had no clue what the guy was talking about, the word Shemusk was new to him and undecipherable, though he could make an educated guess that it had to do with Kimble's gift to him. He could only wonder what a Lushna-esk would make of his own shine, he'd been led to believe he was the only human around with the Kundatesh. A rarity, unique. Something that gave him no small amount of pride. He tried to recover from a feeling of intense giddiness at this guy's presence and bearing. Kimble's famous catchphrase coming from a complete stranger, it made him shiver and shake. Remy was filled with an intense longing and desire. The truth was, as soon as this one had come in the room, everyone else had disappeared. The Kundatesh was a powerful thing, it seeks out others of its kind and forms powerful bonds. These two couldn't take their eyes off of one another.

"Back off, Skye," Darken warned with real authority, coming up the ramp. The Games Master now looked drastically different, having shut off his image inducing cloak as he entered. He was now a young Dognan boy, yet just as nerdy and bookish as before. He was fully Dognan and a member of the elite, his wings were clearly visible. He was brown furred, a youthful teenaged lion on two legs, and dressed in the cavalry style clothing as Trishnar had worn. He looked at Remy and teased arrogantly, "Skye's a bit more powerful than a human can take and he knows it. He's high spirited, too. And out of your league. He'll blow you away and have a good laugh over it, I promise."

Skye ignored his Master's order and peeled himself away from his slouch in the doorway, approaching Gambit with the same arrogance and self control Aiden possessed and looked him over, licking his lips. Skye's vibration of desire for the young thief was powerful enough for the others in the room to feel it. It was clear in the way Jean had flushed instantly and Scott had shifted his feet nervously.

In spite of being distracted as he was, Gambit could feel the effects on his teammates. He sensed their arousal like a low buzzing in his mind, but more than that, he knew that as much as they were mesmerized by the interaction between him and Skye, they did not approve. For a moment, Remy felt that great separation between him and them now, between the Lushna-esk and the human. He was caught in between and the hurt of it made him realize that he now identified himself more with the Siskans than he did his fleshly companions, no Siskan had ever judged him the way they had and it woke a spark of resentment in him.

Skye was all over it, reading that well enough. His eyes met Gambit's in a challenge as he boldly spoke in English, "So I'm too much fer ya, huh? Gee, that's too bad. Just when things wuz gittin' innerestin'."

"Gambit t'ink mebbe dere ain't much 'e can't 'andle," Remy asserted arrogantly, rising to the dare and not backing down an inch. It had been more than just a simple challenge, it was an invitation to cross over back into world of the Lushna-esk and Remy was just too tired and pissed off to refuse.

Skye happily grunted a laugh and invaded Remy's personal space, chest to chest as he kissed him deeply, testing Remy's resolve. When Skye saw that Gambit showed no hesitation, the game of chicken began in earnest. He sent his next challenge,**_ / Lay with me. C'mon. I'll be the best ya ever had. / _**

Arrogance and sexual confidence, a common trait among the Lushna-esk, Remy could see that. His Kundatesh addicted mind was game for a little fooling around, knowing Skye's boast had merit. At the very least, it would be memorable and would no doubt go a long way towards erasing the misery of the past few days out in the snow with his nightmares. He could use some cheer.

Just the same, he'd made a decision, a very critical one. If he was to lay with a male Siskan willingly, Kimble was going to be that one. He would keep his virginity intact for the Lover. It might sound girly or foolish, but he just didn't care. He would save that moment – if it ever happened at all --- for the one who had earned it most. He owed Kimble that.

Gambit returned Skye's kiss, even shoving back just a little in contest, plundering Skye's mouth with a skill that he'd never shown in public, he had always saved his more subtle talents for those conquests that never involved X-men or saving the world. Lost in a Kundatesh driven desire to seduce and conquer, his teammates were forgotten. He was working Skye, demanding his compliance, all the while sending a message through the Kundatesh, hoping it answered the dare confidently enough without him losing any ground. Sex or cards, it didn't matter, he was a gambler at heart and hated to lose at either.**_ / Change fo' me an' I will. /_**

**_/ Shure,_ **came the reply easily enough.

Rogue gasped sharply when Skye's body seemed to melt a little around the edges and changed into a striking female version of his first skin, the switch not interrupting the kiss one bit. Skye's clothes hadn't changed with her and she was now against the thief, half dressed and luscious in the black spandex and silk.

Gambit shivered with fierce arousal now, his body craving this almost to the point of madness. The Kundatesh that was so close and being offered so freely demanded his consent. He knew he was here to work, but the power had a way of eroding one's priorities.

"**_This good enough fer ya, pretty?"_** Skye continued their conversation in Siskan.

"Oui, **_dis real fine." _**

Skye smiled, happy now. Remy could see she was like Aiden and not often picked. It seemed he had a way with finding the broken ones and seeing past all that to the real Siskan inside.

Darken snorted. "Hope you're up to it. That one's a handful, it doesn't always play fair. If it fries you, I'm not responsible."

Skye stiffened, her shine turning cloudy at the insult. Like all Lushna-esk, Kintay or otherwise, she was offended at the idea of not being considered real. Darken had spoken of her like she was an object and not a living creature.

Gambit understood this all too well and was there to show he did not agree with Darken's view on things. "No worries. Gambit lived t'rough Aiden, he live t'rough dis one, too."

Darken arched an eyebrow in real surprise. "You lay with Aiden? I'm impressed. Most humans won't lay with the same gender."

Remy smiled painfully, aware of the smirk that crossed Scott's face. He didn't exactly lie when he said, " 'E change fo' me."

"Aiden changed for you?" Darken said with some disbelief. "That pissy little fuck doesn't change for anybody."

"Gambit ain't jus' anybody," Remy replied arrogantly and took Skye's arm. He hadn't liked the insult directed at Aiden, but sometimes if the shoe fits...well. Aiden wasn't the easiest going Siskan he'd met, not like Skye here who was all invitation and ready to romp. He turned towards her and said, "Well, chere? You gonna give Gambit de grand tour or what?"

"This way, pretty."

Remy started to leave, but stopped when Scott made a noise. "Oui?"

Scott met his eyes. "Sixes and sevens, right?"

Remy grinned. This was code for "watch your back." This wasn't the first time they had gone out on a mission where the team was split up, the best way to seek and find information or whatever was needed. By saying this, Cyclops was subtly asking if this was for real or just part of the game being played. The way this had been presented to Scott was that they were here for Darken, not for anything else on the side. Scott didn't know what was going on, was Remy really thinking of going all the way with this? What was the point? Gambit's team leader wasn't happy.

Gambit didn't exactly answer, but looked back at his nervous and uncomfortable teammates before replying with a grin, "When in Rome, non? Oh, an' Rogue? Like I said, dese kids jus' like Kimble. Dey can touch you --- all over. Best take advantage of opportunity, comprenez?" He didn't look back again, but allowed himself to be led away.

The others just stood there, nervous now in this sexually charged atmosphere. Scott was furious. Gambit's response hadn't been satisfying at all and that last remark to Rogue? That just about spelled out Gambit's intentions like a big fat neon sign. It only raised his ire another notch. They were here for Darken, not to screw around. Not for the first time, Scott was thinking Remy was a liability. Still, he wasn't about to argue here in front of the mission's target. There would be no open disagreement.

Darken smirked at them, sensing his guests were well out of their element. "Don't be shy. They're just holograms. Use them, don't use them, it's your three hours to kill. I just came up to get a couple of things." He then turned away and walked off, disappearing into the galley.

Rogue didn't quite know what to do with herself. She had seen Remy take over a room before, they had been on missions where it was expected of him to glide in and seduce and distract. She had thought Remy's bizarre flirtation was something like that, she certainly didn't expect to see him walk off with the Siskan like that. It had startled her, the way Gambit's whole face had changed at the sight of that strange man, as if he could see something there no one else could. How had he known Skye was coming? She had noticed Remy's head turning before the Siskan had even entered the room. There had been a strange electric charge between them, not unlike the one that seemed to exist between him and Kimble. It was so frustrating and odd and she disliked being left out. She didn't like his non-answer to Scott's question, it was almost like he had blown Scott off, daring the boss to challenge his flagrant misbehavior. It was as though Remy had become someone else, someone from some other place, or perhaps she didn't know him as well as she thought she did.

Hamish smiled and bowed at Rogue, interrupting her thoughts. "My lady? It would be my pleasure to serve you this day." He offered his hand and Rogue hesitated, deciding.

"What did ya have in mind, Sugah?"

He grinned at her. "Whatever you desire, my Lady. A nice hot bath? A warm meal? Whatever you wish."

"Well, a bath would be real nice. Two weeks out here campin' sure does take a lot out of a lady."

He bowed again and took her hand, leading her away in the direction Remy had gone. That left Jean and Scott. Jean took his arm and laughed, "How about it, Lover? A bath sounds heavenly. I won't let you out of my sight, I promise."

He looked back at her, knowing his discomfort was amusing to her. "Whatever you say."

Lislay approached them with a smile. "This way, please."

------------------------

An hour or so later, Remy came awake in a fog. His body was stiff, sore, but yet humming with pleasant magic. He'd blacked out again, this time for a while. He sat up and grunted when he felt a strange ache in his arms. He looked at his hands, blinking through his fog, and saw red scuff marks on his wrists. He looked at them, uncomprehending. Had he been bound? He really couldn't remember. The last thing he could consciously recall was coming in here with Skye and being tossed playfully on the bed.

This was a big ship with comfortable living quarters. Skye had her own room filled with expensive wooden furniture and the ususal toys. The room was finely made, with beautiful paintings and an armoire filled with luxurious, colorful clothing. The coup de grace of the whole scene was a large four poster bed that was centered against the largest wall of the room, demanding attention. It was covered with thick blankets and silk sheets, a camper's dream, and Remy had sunk into it, dreaming of bliss but had found oblivion instead. He had no memory of the session that had followed.

He looked around him now that he had awakened and noticed he was alone in the bed. He also saw no bindings of any kind, nothing that would have explained the damage on his wrists. No, scratch that. He picked up a black silk scarf from a pile of them on a small table beside the bed. He sifted it through his hands as a faint memory trickled through. He saw this on his face, he'd been blindfolded. He saw himself begging, pleading, but for what? For her to take him, for her to let him be with her forever.

_No, way,_ he argued with himself._ Dat's impossible. I'd never give m'self over. Gotta be some kind of dream._

He looked down at his body. He was spreadeagled on the massive bed, naked and unmarked except for more red scuff marks on his ankles. Above his head, what he thought had been ornaments on the massive headboard were in fact rings where his hands must have been tied. A matching set dangled on the footboard. _Lordy, lordy, dis boy sure in trouble,_ he thought to himself. He couldn't argue about how good he felt, though. He could feel a humming vibration in his body, not unlike that time he'd been with Aiden, when those sparkling little lights had coursed right through him. Had Skye boosted him again? How loud was Shi'ow-ri going to speak? Would she shout now? He felt so funny.

He trembled, a little spooked by all this. He looked back on himself, a bit ashamed now, thinking of how confidently he thought he could handle Skye. Looked like she had just taken him for a ride. He thought he could take anything a Siskan could throw at him and he'd been heartily humbled, been given a very rude awakening. He had let his overconfidence and Kundatesh addiction put him in a very precarious position. He didn't like that he couldn't really remember anything. Well, maybe if he didn't, someone else did. He closed his eyes. _Shi'ow-ri?_

_**/ Yes?**_

Remy was relieved to hear her voice was normal. She might be stronger now, but she wasn't shouting._ What 'appened? What's goin' on?_

_**/ Skye loved you. /**_

_No shit. Why do I feel all messed up?_

_**/ His Kundatesh is strong. Feels good, doesn't it?**_

_Oui, chere. He didn't...he didn't do nuthin' ...**funky**... to me...did 'e?_

_**/ You mean like fuck you in the ass?**_

_**Shi'ow-ri!**_

**_/ Sorry, couldn't help it, _**she teased with a laugh. **_/ No, my dear. Your virginity is indeed intact. He just sent you on a trip around the world. /_**

Gambit looked up when he heard a rush of silk as Skye came in from another room. She was still dressed in her female skin and smelled of sweet things, of love and flowers. She looked so harmless and fragile as she stood there, but he knew better than to trust her completely now. She came to him and touched his face. **_"He wakes." _**

**_" 'E's here, but not too awake, non." _**

"**_You wuz tired. Gots some rest now."_** The Siskan paused before asking with a small smile of insecurity, **_"Did I makes ya happy? I done good fer yous?"_**

"Oui, chere," he replied, doing his best to sit up. He was stiff, but yet felt rejuvenated. He certainly didn't feel the bone aching exhaustion and depression he'd felt out in the wilderness. It was as if the quick nap he'd taken here had made up for two weeks' worth of sleepless nights. As much as Skye made him somewhat nervous, he couldn't discount her ability to make him feel on top of the world.

"**_Takes me with ya,"_** she whispered from beside him so softly he almost missed it.

"_**What?" **_

"_**When ya leaves, takes me with ya." **_

"**_Gambit need de Games Master,_** chere. **_Ain't gonna piss de boy off by stealin' you...though I admit ...it sure is temptin'."_** That wasn't a lie. With her so near to him and feeling her vibrations of loneliness and sorrow, he would have liked nothing less than to take her out of here and bring her somewhere more suitable for a Lushna-esk 'gram. He wanted only t make her happy just as he wanted Kimble to be happy.

Skye crouched down in front of him submissively, a tear leaking from one of her eyes. **_"It's so horrible now with his father gone. I'm alone alla the time."_**

He felt her pain, so much like Kimble this was. **_"De other Siskans? Don' dey play wit you?"_**

She shook her head. **_"You know they's ain't likes me. They's so empty, they's ain't gots nuthin' inside. It's like...it's like fuckin' sumpthin' dead." _**

"_**Not everyone 'ave de Kundatesh." **_

"_**I knows. But if they's gots no life, they's gots no shine. It ain't no good fer me." **_

"Oui, **_Gambit understands,"_** he said, kissing her again. He knew that, like Kimble, she would suffer without the touch of a living client, it just wouldn't be the same without the heartbeats and the heat. **_"De new Games Master won't lay wit you?" _**

"**_He's just a kid, some stupid little boy. He's all scared of me. He yells at me alla the time cuz he ain't gots no unnerstandin' of me. He don't loves me an' he ain't never gonna. Yer...yer the first ta be's with me since the Master died. It's been so long..."_** she replied, another tear spilling down her cheek.

"Shh..." Remy said, wiping it away. **_"Gambit wish 'e could take you, 'e really does. Gambit feels yo' pain, 'e really does." _**

He really did wish he could take her, he felt for all Siskans, especially the Kintay du Lushna-esk like Kimble and Aiden. He was like Trishnar now, they had wormed their way into his heart permanently with their humanity and suffering. They were his magic little children and he loved them more than he could say. Skye might not be part of the Game, but he could feel the strength of her, of her will. She was magical and beautiful, something to be cherished. She had shifted to the female to please him, but he knew she wouldn't stay that way for long. She was like Kimble and Aiden, the ones who had the powerful inner strength always preferred to be male. Trishnar had taught him that.

Even if he could liberate her, Remy wouldn't have kept her, no. Kimble was more than enough for him, but he could find a place for her. Etienne and the guys would love her, that's for sure. A clubhouse moll, what better vocation for a Siskan Courtesan? Even Tante Mattie could use a caretaker around to help out with the large Thieves Guild brood. It would be better than being ignored here and tossed aside. The other 'grams here wouldn't care, they didn't feel, not like Skye did.

"**_I unnerstand,"_** Skye said, hiding her pain. **_"It's just the way things is, I knows. C'mon. Let me wash ya up. Let me do fer ya. The Games Master'll be ready fer ya soon." _**

"Oui, chere. Merci."

He let her take his hands and bring him into the next room. Here now was a luxurious bathroom, complete with recessed bathtub and masseuse table. She placed him in the bath and slipped in behind him, finishing off her work with this, the loving after. Remy felt her joy of this intimacy and so it became his own. It didn't keep him from considering the reasons why he was here in the first place. Even as her hands began to touch him, to wash him, his mind was already working. He hoped Darken would be willing to help him with Kimble, he had gone to great lengths to acquire the things Darken might ask for in compensation. He just hoped it would be enough.


	7. Chapter 7

(Seven)

Jean and Scott were in the galley when Remy returned. They both had had a nice long bath and a good meal. They hadn't used the Siskan holograms for anything other than a bath and a massage. Even so, they took Darken's offer of free playtime seriously and lingered there in his large bathroom, being tended by these strange beings. Jean tried to get a bead on them telepathically, but like Kimble and Seth, they had no real mental presence, something perplexing. They weren't as animated as the brothers were either, a little less "there" than the Siskans back home. Now Jean could see what the appeal was and why Remy and his Siskan had become such fast friends.

Cyclops didn't give off an air of noticing the difference between these Siskans and the ones back home, but he had. These creatures were calm and happy, delightfully passive and ... safe. There was no air of danger here, no confusing switch of personalities or voices. Just the pleasant blandness of expensive hotel staff. They did their work efficiently and with great skill. He enjoyed the gift he'd been given --- a fine bath, an amazing all over body massage that reminded him of when he and Jean'd had their honeymoon together. These creatures gave him nothing to fear and the time passed swiftly. Once clean and refreshed, Jean and Scott were the first to come here to the galley and feed themselves at Darken's well stocked table.

Rogue came out a few minutes later. Hamish had been everything she had heard a Siskan could be and more. It was beyond her expectations, she had been well loved by a man who could touch her completely. She didn't give his unreality a second's thought. To her, he was simply a man who could touch her body without causing her to suffer from her mutation. It had been very satisfying, but it still wouldn't match that tumble she had taken with Remy with the collar. His love for her had been real, palpable, and it made all the difference in the world.

In spite of Hamish's skill, Rogue would never be able to get the sight of her Gambit --- **her Gambit!**--- walking away with Skye like that. He hadn't given her so much as an afterthought as he'd walked off, his body screaming pure animal lust. She knew he would fuck that Siskan just as she assumed he had Kimble and not even bat an auburn Cajun eyelash about it. It had been a stab to her heart. She had never imagined that he would so openly display his lack of a broken heart over their breakup. He hadn't even looked back as his body had moved away with that lovely catlike grace she had taken for granted. His eyes had looked on the female Skye with such love, it was staggering. What had he seen in that creature that he no longer saw in her?

After that, Rogue had taken Hamish's love almost as a revenge thing, but then as good as it had been, found herself retreating to the bathroom to cry. Her pain over the loss of Remy had been vast. She just hadn't realized what that red eyed scoundrel meant to her until it was too late. She had always assumed he would come back to her no matter what, but that just didn't seem the case any more.

Hamish wasn't Lushna-esk, he didn't question Rogue's odd behavior, he simply cleaned up the room and stood by, waiting to see what else she might need. She had her cry and then came out, her mind made up. It was her life's biggest mistake, throwing Gambit away like that. She had made a secret vow to try and win him back if she could. Even now, she didn't think it was impossible. She could be nice, she could be civil just as she had back at the camp. She was strong, the strongest on the team. She could do this.

She would have to work hard at it. Remy came into the galley last, his satisfaction far greater than hers. His eyes were small and glassy as if he were stoned, he was still drunk from the Kundatesh and he felt a great peace. He'd been given a taste of the Heaven that had been his at Trishnar's. He was more than Skye's equal in the arts of love, much to the delight of the Siskan, her happiness had equaled his own.

She glided in after him, and as Gambit had predicted, shifted back into her male skin. Skye winked at him and poured his new friend a glass of wine from the large selection on galley counter. Gambit was sitting now at the large galley table and Skye settled in next to him sideways on the bench. He set the glass of wine down where Remy could reach it and lay his head on the Cajun's shoulder, his eyes droopy with contentment. His arms encircled Gambit's waist, his hands resting in the thief's lap. Remy snickered something in soft Siskan, a tease that made Skye smile. The Siskan closed his eyes, happy and comfortable now.

Scott watched this, bewildered. They were here on a mission and team behavior on missions was sometimes skewed depending on the objective. After Remy had left, Scott had tried to reason with himself that Gambit was acting so boldly in an attempt to impress Darken in some way, that he was trying to force Darken to perceive him as an equal when it came to Siskans. This hadn't been discussed at the onset, but none of them had known what to expect.

Yeah, expect.

Well, Scott certainly hadn't expected Remy to take it to this level. Cyclops' inner homophobe was struggling to watch Remy's ease with this creature's arms around him. The intimacy that had been implied when they walked off together the first time was now on display, assuring any who watched that it had actually taken place.

Scott simply didn't want to know.

_Look at that, did you see?_

The question had come from Scott's telepathic wife. _See what? That Remy's a slut? I may have a visor on, but that I couldn't miss._

_No, the way Skye shifted. _

He had observed the Siskan shift again with as much wonder as he had the first time he'd seen it. Still, he didn't get the point. _What about it?_

The response he got was a mental sigh of exasperation. Scowling slightly, Scott looked again at Remy, finding those glittering red and black eyes almost glaring at him. He could see the challenge on Remy's face, the dare to comment. Scott was a team leader and could assess most situations with ease, it was just that when it came to personal matters he was a little slow. He could hear his wife chattering in his mind again, explaining a little now what Remy was trying to get across to not just him, but everyone here --- that a Siskan had no real gender, that appearances meant nothing, something that Gambit had been trying to get across to everyone for a while now. That had been the point of his boldness now with Skye's intimate embrace. This display of his disregard for human insensibility had a purpose, Gambit was showing them rather dramatically just how much he saw the Siskans as genderless creatures of great value.

"What time is it?" Scott asked, impatient to get this over with. He'd gotten the point, but wasn't pleased with the lesson. He wanted only to get this over with and be done.

"Darken's three hours are up," Jean replied.

"De Dognan not so well known fo' deir punctuality," Remy replied smoothly, backing down and easing off from his irritation with his ignorant team leader. Gambit was fully relaxed now and unhurried. The others were refreshed from their travel by the fine care of the Siskans here, but he looked like a new man. The strain and dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep were gone and his good humor fully restored, bringing a puzzled look from the others he chose to ignore. He sipped the wine, finding it good, and reached for a hunk of bread. The food spread out before him looked delicious and he intended to savor it.

Remy had returned fully dressed in his traveling clothes. Like Fallen, Darken's facilities included washing machines that worked quickly. All of his supplies had been refreshed by Skye while he had slept. He was dressed now in a heavy green sweater with long sleeves. He'd been forced to wear this in spite his being comfortable in the heat of the ship because he needed the sleeves.

Whatever he'd done with Skye must have been quite the show. Even a few moments later, his wrists were still scuffed and now lightly bruising as were his ankles. He didn't want his friends to notice or ask questions he wasn't sure he had the answers to. He still had no idea what he'd been involved in, only that he was buzzed quite nicely on Skye's Kundatesh and feeling wonderful. There was a pleasant tickle at the base of his skull, his memory was waking and he had a feeling he would remember his adventure in time. For now he was content to relax and enjoy his high.

Darken shuffled in on cue, looking a bit tired. He had been outside all the while, working away. He paused when he saw Skye draped over Gambit's shoulder and shook his head wryly. "You didn't tell me you were an empath."

"P'etetre, Gambit's just de best dere is, non?" he joked merrily, his eyes playful.

Darken snorted, not amused. "The only one that's ever made Skye look like that is a Lushna-esk like himself. Not even my Dad could make him that quiet and well behaved."

"What is this 'Lushna-esk'?" Scott asked, unhappy to be so left out.

"De Lushna-esk are de 'grams dat 'ave de charm power," Remy answered with the arrogance of one in the know. "Skye jus' like Kimble dat way." He grabbed a plate and started piling some food on it. Skye's eyes never opened in spite of Gambit's movement, he was much too comfortable.

"I suppose you have the charm power, too?" Rogue asked, challenging him. Her eyes finished the question, _Is that what you used on me?_

Remy just grinned, not really answering. He wasn't one to dole out his secrets.

Darken could have cared less about the conversation happening at his table. He sat there quietly and opened up his computer. It booted up quickly and he typed rapidly, watching the lines of text as they scrolled up the screen.

Scott snorted and looked away, aggravated by Gambit's game.

_What are you doing?_ Jean asked Remy, rudely jumping into his mind. _Why are you being such a jerk about this?_

Remy replied quickly, his response irritated, but his face cool and smooth in front of their host. He was a master at bluffing and it carried him now. _Gambit got no stomach fo' intolerance. Yo' hubby got far too much of dat for an X-man, chere_.

_When did you get the empathy like this? Why are you hiding it?_

_Gambit don't hide nuthin'. Folks 'round here just don't **see**._

_Answer the question!_

Gambit's response was a mental chuckle. _Dat's private._

Like a child begging secrets, Jean couldn't hide her eagerness to know. Telepathy, empathy, gifts of the mind were her field and she couldn't help but be intrigued._ I won't tell anyone._

_Me an' Chuck got it all squared away, chere. _

_Empathy is dangerous._

_Oui, Gambit knows. _To take the sting from his refusal, he added, _T'anks fo' carin'._

Jean's eyes dropped briefly and Remy received a vibration of sympathy that came without words. She was expressing a sort of grief, of regret that he'd been treated so harshly by the team. It hadn't been her idea to leave him behind in Antarctica and there was no way to hide that that particular episode had changed him. He'd returned to the house, but his old humor had been left behind and frozen. The boy had been left behind and it was a man who had returned, one that had been torn apart. He could hide behind all the poker faces he wanted to, but he couldn't hide from a class one telepath what an effort it had taken to bring him home. His return hadn't been easy and not everyone at the house had been happy about it. She felt bad for him, that he thought no one really cared about him.

Remy looked away, uncomfortable and surprised by her reaction to his simple statement. His former exile was one area he hadn't even wanted to think about now. Funny how it just popped up like that. Like he would never get away from it.

Skye shifted, sensing Remy's disquiet. His eyes opened partway and he whispered in Siskan, prompting a soft, comforting response from the thief. Remy was happy for the distraction, Jean's sympathy was forgotten instantly as he eased Skye's mind.

Darken quirked an eyebrow, his swift tapping away never hesitating. "That one's quite taken with you.You can have it if you want."

Remy and Skye both looked at him in irritated surprise. It was the way he'd once more referred to Skye as less than something real and valuable.

Darken paused in his work. "What? It's not happy here. It's pining away worse than the others. It's a leftover from my father, one he tried to fix. It's mostly okay, it just doesn't talk right and it's so goddamned moody. Really, you'd be doing me a favor."

"We've got our hands full with the broken one we already have," Scott replied tersely, not happy with the idea of adding to the pair of Siskans they had already. "He's more than enough, thanks."

Gambit considered his options. In a way, Darken had just given him the confirmation he needed -- if Skye was in the Game, Darken would never have just given him way like that. Gambit looked at Skye and asked with a smile, **_"You power up from de sun or cubes?"_**

Skye grinned, already seeing where this was going. **_"Sun's just fine fer me."_**

"_**Bien. Gambit won't be yo' Master, but 'e find you a place, a good place where you would be happy. 'Ow about it?" **_

Remy wasn't an idiot. He wanted Skye out of here but knew he couldn't bring him home. Kimble would never be able to handle it, he didn't think. Kimble could share him with Molly, or so he hoped, but with another Siskan? Never. It would be too much. That didn't mean Remy could find other accommodations. Skye's independence from the power cubes made it that much easier.

Skye's face broke out in a huge smile at Remy's generous offer. **_"Oh yes, please!" _**

"Don't even think about it, Gambit," Cyclops warned.

"It would be my pleasure," Remy replied to Darken, making his decision swiftly. He bowed his head slightly at him. "Merci beaucoup."

_Remy!_ Jean shouted. _You can't make that decision on your own!_

_Watch me. I won't leave no Siskan behind to be treated like dirt._ _Not an empathic one, not one dat feel as much as dey do. 'E'll die inside._ _'E suffer so much already._

_These are not pets! They're too dangerous!_

_Only 'round dose dat don' love dem. Don' worry, I'll find 'im a good home._

Skye gave Remy a bruising hug, squeezing him without mercy. He spouted his gratitude in joyful, garbled Siskan, laughing. Remy couldn't help but chuckle and reply in kind. Skye got up and kissed him, another deep throated gesture of love, and left.

Scott watched him leave, his face crinkled in annoyance. "Where's he going?"

"Gonna pack up 'is stuff," Remy replied arrogantly. His eyes held a challenge to the Professor's Second. _Your Inner Circle rules don't apply to me._

"He's not coming back with us," Scott said firmly.

Darken sighed. "Bicker later. Now, what's wrong with your Siskan?"

"E's split," Remy replied, immediately taking charge.

Darken typed. "What color is his Mark?"

"Green."

The Dognan boy stopped. "Green?"

"Oui, Green. Dat a problem?"

"Channelers are very volatile. I wish you had brought him."

**_/ He's lying,_** Shi'ow-ri said. **_/ That's not the reason. He's hiding something. /_**

_Not fo' long._

"So 'e a Channeler, big deal."

"You know what they're capable of?"

"Oui. Gambit's seen it. Kimble ain't no trouble. Dis a fast ship. Come back wit us," he challenged. "Don' tell me de great Games Master is scared of a little 'ol 'gram?"

Darken frowned at the taunt. "I don't usually make house calls."

" 'Ow much you want?"

The boy snorted at him and looked at his casual clothes. "You couldn't afford me."

" 'Ow much, mon ami," Remy repeated, politely insistent.

"Ten million."

"Seven."

"Eight."

"Seven fifty."

"Seven seventy-five."

"Done."

Scott balked. "Remy?"

Remy held up a finger, shushing him. " 'Ow you want it?"

"Seven million, seven hundred and fifty thousand, American. I have accounts here, people who can convert it into more liquid assets for me to use off-world."

"T'ree million now, de rest when de job is done."

"I want a down payment."

Remy tossed him a small black velvet bag.

Darken took it and dumped out a small pile of diamonds. "Impressive," he whispered, happy now. He reached behind him to a drawer and took out a magnifying glass. He began to inspect the gems, grinning with pleasure.

_Where did you get those? _Jean asked telepathically.

_Saby's penthouse. 'E broke Kimble down, 'e can pay fo' some of it._

Jean spoke to the others telepathically, explaining what was going on and trying to cool down the rising tempers around her. She realized now this was why Remy had asked her to come when he found out who the Professor had lumped him with on the trip. Gambit knew he would have to negotiate and that it might not go over so well with the others. He didn't want an argument at the negotiating table.

"We good, mon ami?" Remy asked the boy after a moment.

"Yeah. This will count for about a million, though I haven't looked through them all. I'll still want the rest in cash."

"We gotta do a transfer, homme. Gambit don't carry dat kinda cash when 'e campin'."

"That's fine."

"Bien," Remy replied and took out his satellite phone.

Scott continued to sputter protests, but was again silenced. He was aggravated, upset that he'd been outvoted. They had no way of knowing if this guy was legitimate or not, that was a lot of money being thrown around and they could be getting ripped off. He knew the money was there, he'd been told about the inheritance Sabretooth had left behind for Kimble. He expected Gambit to call the Professor to make the arrangements, but was surprised when Remy dialed long distance and began to speak in fluent Swedish, doing this all on his own with a familiarity with the process that only proved they knew little about this young man who lived under their roof. It meant that Remy was using his own money, or was stealing it from someone else. He felt his temper rise but was soothed by Jean's soft voice in his mind.

_It's his own money. Relax._

_How do you know?_

She laughed._ I'm a telepath. It's my job to know._

_He can hide his thoughts._

_Not this one. He told me before we left._

_Why am I even here? You guys have this all worked out_. he replied with a pout.

_Don't be silly. We need you here. I need you here._

Scott calmed down and let all of this go, vowing to report all of this the Professor. Did Charles even know Remy had that kind of money? Maybe it was an inheritance from Jean Luc, but it was just as easy to say he'd robbed it from someone else. The Cajun would always be a criminal in his eyes.

Darken was checking the transaction on his computer and he and Remy chatted back and forth, setting all of this up. Rogue was watching this with as much amazement as Scott. Remy was talking about millions of dollars like it meant nothing. Just how much did he have and where did he get it? He hid everything!

Darken nodded. "That's good, fine."

"When can we leave?" Remy asked, his eyes eager.

"I have no plans. We can leave now."

To be continued in Mergers and Consolidations.


End file.
